Montana
by Shanna1
Summary: What's in a name? Post Stealing Home DL Now Complete
1. Chapter 1

Lindsay Monroe hadn't been able to sleep after she had visited Sarah's killer and hadn't received an answer to why her out of all the women in the city of New York. But that wasn't the only thing keeping her up.

Some how in the hazy logic it seemed like a good idea to be stood outside the door bundled up in a coat and gloves against the cold night air.

Lindsay took a deep breath before she knocked on the door. Half a second later she realised it was a bad idea and turned and walked away. She got half way to the stairs and stalled, the indecisiveness getting to her.

A sleep Danny Messer opened the door dressed only in his boxer shorts. When he saw the doorway was empty he looked down the hallway to see the back of the retreating Lindsay.

"Montana?" Danny questioned.

"Hi." Lindsay turned around. "I'm sorry, go back to bed forget I was here."

"You don't show up at my door at three in the morning for no reason." Danny pointed out.

"It was stupid, please go back to sleep, I'll see you at work." Lindsay apologised.

"Montana." Danny rubbed his eyes. "Come on in."

"Danny, it was stupid coming over here to because I couldn't sleep. Go back to bed, I'll just go home."

"Please don't make me come over there." Danny said. "I'm awake you might as well tell me the real reason you're here."

Lindsay reluctantly went into the apartment and Danny closed the door behind her and locked it.

"I'm sorry I woke you." Lindsay apologised.

"It's okay." Danny said. "You want something to drink?"

"I'm fine." Lindsay sat on the couch.

"So what made it so you couldn't sleep and came halfway across town in the middle of the night to wake me up?" Danny asked.

"I should just go." Lindsay started to get up.

"Montana." Danny put a hand on her arm to get to her stay.

"Sarah." Lindsay whispered.

"Some times even when you catch the bad guy you don't get the answers to why they did what they did. He is going to jail for what he did, Sarah gets justice, that's the best we can do. It's all part of the job."

"I know." Lindsay yawned. "Sorry."

"Is that why you couldn't sleep?" Danny asked.

"Sid said something."

"Sid?" Danny questioned.

"Sid Hammerback." Lindsay clarified.

"I know who Sid is. What did he say that's making your brain thinking too much?"

"Why do you call me Montana?" Lindsay asked.

Danny was slightly confused by the switch in topic.

"Because Delaware didn't have the same ring to it." He joked; he knew that it was the wrong thing to say the instant it came out of his mouth. "You were the new girl so it was fun to tease you, and it made you blush. You still do slightly. What does this have to do with Sid?"

"He says that you call me Montana because you have a crush on me."

Danny looked at her not sure what to say.

"I should get going." Lindsay said feeling uncomfortable in the silence. "Sorry for waking you up, I'll see you at work tomorrow." Lindsay started to head towards the door.

"Montana wait." Danny caught her arm and spun her around.

"Dann…" Lindsay didn't get to finish even his name before his lips crushed. Lindsay wrapped her arms around his neck. Danny held her against him. "Wow."

"That's one word for it. Come on." He grabbed her hand and started walking towards the bedroom.

"Danny, I'm not that kind of girl."

"I know. It's late and this is a conversation we need to have when both have had some sleep. I'm not letting go home by yourself at this time of night and I'm too tired to get dressed so you're staying here."

"I can sleep on the couch?" Lindsay offered.

"It's lumpy and you'll end up complaining you have a bad back all day if you sleep on the couch. We're adults we can share a bed."

Lindsay looked at him.

"I'll keep my hands to myself as long as you do." Danny joked.

"Okay." Lindsay conceded she was too tired to argue.

Danny led her into his bedroom, which was decorated just as Lindsay expected. Danny rifled in a drawer and handed her a Jets jersey.

"Bathroom is through there." He indicated the door off the bedroom.

"Thanks Danny."

Danny climbed back into bed. Lindsay returned a few minutes later dressed in his shirt.

"Looks better on you than me Montana." Danny told her.

"They aren't the 49ers." Lindsay shrugged and climbed into the empty side of the bed. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight Montana."

Lindsay went to sleep almost as soon as here head hit the pillow, while Danny lay wide awake having inappropriate thoughts about the woman lying next to him.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

When Danny woke up Lindsay had rolled over. Her head was resting against his chest, her arm flung over his waist.

'It's not a bad way to wake up Messer'. Danny thought to himself. He carefully extricated himself from the bed and went and took a very cold shower.

Danny was in the process of making coffee when Lindsay's coat started ringing. She'd obviously had left it in the pocket. Since Lindsay was still sleeping in his bed, he fished it out. The caller ID said it was Mac.

"Hey Mac." He answered.

"_Danny why are you answering Lindsay's cell phone at 7 in the morning?" _Mac inquired.

"The last case got to her so she came by to talk and fell asleep." It wasn't a lie, Mac didn't need to know she came over at 3 am or the fact that she slept in Danny's bed. "I answered since it was you and she's still asleep."

"_Can you wake her up? I need you both to meet me at the Statue of Liberty?"_

"Who has Lady Liberty been killing off?"

"_The guards were checking the area and found two dead women." _Mac added where to meet him.

"We'll meet there as soon as we can." Danny told him and they finished the call. Danny dropped Lindsay's cell phone back in her coat pocket.

Danny walked into the bedroom; Lindsay had sprawled out over the entire bed.

"Yo Montana up at 'em." Danny said hopping to wake up her up. "Shake a leg." He grabbed her foot. "Or do I need to find a rooster."

"I shot the last rooster my parents had." Lindsay muttered.

"I thought country girls were good first thing in the morning."

"We have to have coffee first." Lindsay replied.

"You look good all rumpled." Danny commented.

"Thanks."

"So have you ever been to the Statue of Liberty?" Danny asked.

"I went past it on the Staten Island ferry." Lindsay replied.

"You need to get up and dressed Mac needs us to meet him. Two DB's at her feet."

"Mac called?" Lindsay was a little confused.

"Your cell." Danny nodded.

"You answered my cell phone?" Lindsay asked. "To Mac."

"I told him you came and threw yourself at me." He joked.

"Danny!" Lindsay chastised.

"I told him you came by to talk and fell asleep. He doesn't need to know any more details than that."

"Thanks Danny."

"Help yourself to the shower. You like scrambled eggs?"

"I like scrambled eggs." Lindsay confirmed. "I'll be as quick as I can."

"A woman who can get ready in ten minutes that has to be a record." Danny said when Lindsay came into the kitchen dressed and he handed her a mug of coffee.

"You ain't seen nothing yet." Lindsay stated. "That smells good."

Danny piled scrambled eggs onto a plate along with bacon and some toast.

"Breakfast. Eat fast we need to leave."

"Do you have any ketchup?" Lindsay inquired.

Danny grabbed the bottle and handed it to her.

"Thanks." Lindsay poured some ketchup on one of the slices of toast, then piled the scrambled eggs and bacon on top and added some more ketchup before adding the other slice of toast and squashing it all down before picking it up and taking a bite. "Not bad. Definitely better than an Egg McMuffin."

"You're full of surprises Montana."

"I'll just grab my purse and coat." Lindsay said as she wrapped her breakfast in a napkin. "What's happening about our kits?" She inquired.

"Mac's bringing you a spare." Danny replied. "I have mine here."

"Can you cook anything else?" Lindsay asked as Danny hailed a cab.

"A few things." Danny replied.

"If we have time one day, I'll cook you all breakfast Montana style."

"Now that sounds like an offer I can't refuse. After you Ms Monroe." Danny said holding the cab door open.

CSI NY CSI NY

"So what do you think Montana?" Danny asked as they stood at the foot of the Statue of Liberty. Lindsay looked up.

"It looks taller on TV."

"It looks taller on TV?" Danny repeated.

"For a gift it's not bad, but I still prefer my bunch of wild flowers."

"Wild flowers?" Danny questioned.

"I was eight and he picked them himself."

"That's better than tugging on your pigtails." Stella remarked from behind her. "Some guys never grow out of that."

"Billy-Ray made me heart shape crop circles for my birthday when were fifteen. Daddy wasn't too impressed since it was his wheat field and made him work it off."

"Billy-Ray?" Danny questioned.

"He's a doctor now." Lindsay countered.

"Making crop circles takes more effort and thought than flowers and chocolates." Stella stated.

"Not that we have anything against flowers and chocolates." Lindsay added. "Hey Mac." She said when she saw her boss walking over.

"Morning. Why don't you and Stella make a start on the bodies and then go back with them when you're done. Danny and I will take a look around and figure out how they ended up here."

"Okay." Stella agreed.

She and Lindsay headed to the bodies. Lindsay grabbed the camera and started taking pictures.

"So you spent last night at Danny's." Stella said.

"I see the gossip here is almost as fast as back home." Lindsay stated.

"NYPD is as good as any small town." Stella agreed.

"I went to talk to him because the last case got to me; he wouldn't let me go home that late by myself so I just stayed. It was perfectly innocent."

"Right." Stella nodded.

"It was." Lindsay protested.

"I believe you." Stella said, but Lindsay could tell she didn't.

"Why do I even bother when no-one believes the truth?"

"The truth is subjective." Stella reminded her.

"This one isn't open to interpretation."

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

"Danny." Mac said as they walked away from the bodies look for how they were dumped at the feet of the Statue of Liberty.

"You find something Mac?" Danny asked.

"About Lindsay."

"Mac nothing happened. Even if it did it would be none of you business." Danny stated. "It got late and I wasn't sending her home alone."

"As long it doesn't effect how you do your jobs or the lab I don't care what you do on your own time. But what I was going to say was let her answer her own cell phone next time; it will save a lot of questions, and Stella interrogating her right now."

"Right, sorry Mac."

"You were right not to send her home alone." Mac told him.

"She offered to makes us all breakfast Montana style sometime." Danny changed the subject.

"Sounds good. Footprint." Mac noticed a foot print near Danny's foot.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay was in the break room pouring herself some coffee when Hawkes and Flack entered.

"Morning Lindsay." Hawkes greeted her.

"Morning." Lindsay replied.

"So when is this breakfast thing?" Flack asked as he grabbed himself some coffee.

"Breakfast thing?" Lindsay questioned.

"Something about you offering to make us all a Montana style breakfast." Flack explained.

"Where did you hear that? I only mentioned it to Danny as a vague idea."

"Stella." Hawkes replied.

"This placed is worse than a small town." Lindsay rolled her eyes. "We'll figure it out for when I have the day off."

"Sounds good." Hawkes agreed.

Lindsay's cell phone rang.

"Monroe." Lindsay answered. "Hey Mom, I'm actually at work can I call you tonight?... That's great. Boy or girl?... What?... Ouch… I'll call her tomorrow when I get home from work… Yes Mom I'll send her something, I need to get back to work…. I love you too. Tell Daddy I love him bye." Lindsay hung up.

"Ah." Hawkes and Flack said simultaneously.

"Grow up."

"Everything okay?" Hawkes asked.

"My cousin had a baby girl this morning, 10lbs exactly."

"Ouch." Hawkes said.

"Do either of you know a good baby store near here?" Both men gave her a look. "Sorry, wrong people to ask."

"What did they call her?" Hawkes asked.

"Don't mention it to Danny but…"

"Don't mention what to Danny?" Danny asked from the doorway.

"Her cousin had a baby girl and we're not supposed tell you what she's called." Flack stated.

"Why can't I know?"

"Because you'll be making jokes all day." Lindsay replied.

"Come on Montana just tell us." Danny requested. Lindsay looked at him. "Oh they didn't." Lindsay nodded.

"What?" Hawkes asked.

"They called her Montana." Danny supplied. "Please tell me they don't actually live in Montana."

"Illinois." Lindsay supplied. Her pager bleeped. "Excuse me."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Did you know that the she has the equivalent of a size 879 shoe size?" Lindsay asked as she walked into the lay out room where Danny was working.

"Must be difficult buying shoes. It's probably why she stuck with the sandals." Danny turned and glanced at her.

"We have names for our vics. Jenny Sanchez, 20, and Kimberley Wallis, 21, students at NYU."

"Someone report them missing?"

"They both participated in a rally and have rap sheets for disturbing the peace." Lindsay explained.

"Let me guess the DA let them off with a slap on the wrist." Danny guessed.

"How did you guess? It also explains the paint we found under their nails."

"What are art students doing on Liberty Island?" Danny asked.

"Everyone was on the last boat off the island and private boats are supposed to be prohibited from mooring. Since time of death was around 2 am."

"Someone was there when they shouldn't have been." Danny concluded.

"Mac and Stella went to check out their dorm rooms for any indication where they were going last night."

"I'd start looking for someone with access to a boat."

"I'll have them round the people who operate the row boats in Central Park." Lindsay joked.

"Cute Montana, real cute."

"I should get back." Lindsay started to leave.

"Monroe." Danny stopped her.

"Yes?"

"Do you want to have dinner tonight?" Danny asked. "We never got to have that conversation."

"It's not something I'd want to talk about in public." Lindsay said. Danny looked a little disappointed. "But I'm pretty good at ordering take out."

"Sounds like a plan." Danny smiled.

"By the way who did you tell about the breakfast thing?" Lindsay asked.

"I thought Mac was giving me his boss / father figure speech but it turned out it was a simple don't answer your cell phone. I told him to change the subject."

"He told Stella who told Flack and Hawkes so I have people coming over for breakfast when I have a day off."

"Sorry."

"I'll let you know if I find out anything else." She reverted back to the case.

"Thanks." Danny went back to work.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

"I have a question." Lindsay said to Stella later.

"Okay."

"What if they came from Jersey?"

"The victims are from New York, so it's a good guess that they left from this side of the state line."

"Liberty Island is 600 metres from New Jersey it's more than three times that to New York. I know on the map it looks like it's in New Jersey but is still a part of New York."

"Someone has been swatting up."

"Idiots guide to the Statue of Liberty: Everything you wanted to know." Lindsay showed Stella the book.

"Where did you get that?" Stella took it from her.

"My family and my co-workers thought it would be funny at my leaving party to give me every guide book possible to New York."

"Have you actually been to these places?" Stella asked.

"I've been to Central Park, on the murder tour and I saw the Statue of Liberty this morning."

"You don't need guide books you need a New Yorker to show you around." Stella saw Danny down the hall. "Danny."

"Yo Stella." Danny came over.

"Lindsay needs someone to show her all the tourist places in town. She needs to go the Empire State Building places like that."

"Getting up close and personal with a tiger wasn't enough of the zoo?" Danny asked.

"It's fine Danny, I'll get around to it eventually."

"I'll go with you. But I'm not going to any art galleries."

"Okay." Lindsay agreed.

"Have we got anything on the case?" Stella asked.

"I've been over every piece of clothing there is no trace anywhere that doesn't belong to the victims."

"The footprints Mac and I found are a common brand of sneakers, and could just be from someone who visited there yesterday." Danny added.

"So we're nowhere."

"Looks that way." Lindsay sighed.

"No-one has any idea where they were going or why. We can't find any evidence and in their dorm rooms of plans."

"No computers?" Lindsay asked.

"Laptops but not connected to the internet."

"What about their university accounts? I mean students can access the internet in the library or other university computer facilities."

"Mac had the same idea, but the university refused to give us the records with a subpoena. We're waiting on a judge."

"Monroe let's go for a walk." Danny suggested.

"A walk?" Lindsay questioned.

"We need to find where the boat went into the water. We'll walk along the water line."

"I need to change my shoes and I'm going to need coffee." Lindsay stated.

"Let us know if you find anything." Stella requested.

"We will."

CSI NY CSI NY

"I'm going to have blisters." Lindsay groaned as they continued to walk.

"I thought you country girls were used to walking places."

"I had a horse and a truck."

"A horse?" Danny questioned.

"Daisy."

"You called your horse Daisy?"

"I had one when I was a kid called Gee-Gee." Lindsay pointed out.

"Gee-Gee?" Danny laughed.

"I was five when I named him."

"You had a horse at five?" Danny questioned.

"I've able to ride practically since before I could walk." She looked at him. "Keep your comments to yourself."

"I wasn't going to say anything."

"Stop." Lindsay told him.

"Stop?" Danny looked at her.

Lindsay sat her kit down and grabbed some gloves. She walked over and crouched down taking a few shots with her camera before extracting the object from the dirt.

"What is it?" Danny asked.

"Kimberley Wallis's student ID."

"I guess we're in the right area." Danny stated. "Do you see any drag marks or signs of a boat?"

"No. But the water could have washed them away." Lindsay said standing up.

"You look around here, I'll head that way." Danny suggested.

"Yo Montana." Danny yelled a few minutes later.

"Do you just really like making me blush?" Lindsay asked.

"Trust me I can think of other ways to make you blush." He winked at her.

"That's a conversation for after work. What were you yelling about?" She came up to join him.

"I found our primary crime scene."

Lindsay pulled out her cell phone and called Mac.

"_Taylor."_ Mac answered.

"Mac it's Lindsay. We found the primary crime scene." She informed him.

"_Where are you?"_

"Hang on." Since they had been walking for over and hour she had no idea where they were. "Danny, where are we?"

"Mac." Danny said taking the phone from here. He gave him the location.

"_We'll be right there."_

Danny hung up.

"Where are we?" He questioned.

"Do you see a street sign?" Lindsay asked. "I'm not from New York, I still get lost."

"Do you have crime scene tape?" Danny asked.

"No."

"I guess we're waiting on the boys in blue for that."

"Just ignoring the fact that we're cops too and our evidence is degrading before our eyes." Lindsay commented.

"We're detectives." Danny corrected. "And I left it in the car. We'll just leave it to the guys in uniform."

"Do you still have yours?" Lindsay asked.

"Of course." Danny replied. "Don't you?"

"I have my one from Montana. But technically after the academy I worked for Gallatin County Sheriff's department CSU. On its own Bozeman only one evidence tech. The Sheriff department helps out."

"You should be able to get an NYPD uniform now."

"Let's process." Lindsay suggested.

"You photograph, I'll collect the evidence."

When a patrol car a couple of minutes later Lindsay handed Danny the camera and went and told them what area to cordon off.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

By the end of the day they had an APB out for a suspect who had disappeared, and there wasn't much the CSIs could do.

In the end Mac sent them home since they had an early start, so they could pick up in the morning.

"Come over around 7.30." Lindsay told Danny. "I'll order Chinese."

"How about I just pick some up on the way?" Danny suggested. "Anything you don't eat?"

"I ate deep fried spiders." She reminded him.

"Good point."

"I'll see you later." Danny closed his locker.

"Bye." Lindsay agreed.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Come in." Lindsay called when Danny tapped on the door. She'd already buzzed him in.

"You know you shouldn't leave your door open, just anyone could walk in." Danny warned her.

"I knew you were on your way up, and my gun is right there, I was just putting it away."

"You look great." Danny told her.

"I wasn't exactly sure what you wear for this kind of discussion." She'd finally settled on her favourite pair of jeans and peasant style top.

"You could just take everything off and negate the need for the discussion in the first place." Danny suggested.

"I'll just get some plates." Lindsay said ignoring his comment.

"You have objections to eating out of cartoons?" Danny asked.

"No, I have objections to dropping food all over my couch. Take a seat, do you want a beer?"

"That would be good." Danny looked around Lindsay's apartment while she getting the drinks.

The apartment had shelves of books, lots of them about forensics and a healthy stack of New York guide books. There were a large selection novels too from a variety of genres and some autobiographies. There were lots of pictures which Danny guessed of her friends and family back in Montana. The place looked and felt like Lindsay should live there.

"Do you need me to give you another few minutes to look around?" Lindsay asked watching him.

"Sorry." He apologised.

"It's okay. If you start trying to process it then I'll start to worry."

"It's a nice place." Danny commented.

"Considering what I paid just to move in would be enough for a down payment on a house back home it ought to be."

"New York is one of the most expensive cities to live in; you just have to avoid the crappy neighbourhoods."

"Good thing this place is rent controlled."

"You managed to get rent controlled?" Danny questioned.

"Sub-leased rent control." Lindsay replied. "A cousin of a friend of a friend got transferred to Helsinki. I had good timing." Lindsay handed him one of the two open bottles of beer and set the plates and napkins on the table.

"Ah."

"So what did you get?"

"A little bit of everything and some barbeque chicken."

"Barbeque chicken?"

"I was walking past and it smelt good." He shrugged.

"So do you want to eat first then talk?" Lindsay suggested.

"How about we do a little of both?" Danny countered.

Lindsay nodded, when they sat down with cartoons of food and chopsticks Danny looked at her.

"Where do we start?"

"I told you that Sid says you call me Montana because you have a crush on me, you didn't say anything so I was leaving and you kissed me. You said we needed to talk and that it would be better in the morning. Then we slept together in the non-biblical sense."

"You know for the whole non-biblical thing you slept awfully close to me."

"I didn't."

"I had to extract myself so I take a very cold shower."

"I'm sorry." Lindsay apologised.

"It's okay; it wasn't a bad way to wake up, ignoring the whole need for a cold shower." Danny replied.

"That's where we were." Lindsay said blushing.

"I guess you want me to start." Lindsay nodded. "I like you a lot, you're smart, funny, beautiful and you didn't try to shoot me for all the crap I put you through after you got here."

"Someone tried to shoot you?" Lindsay questioned.

"An ex-girlfriend didn't like the fact that I had to work a triple and missed the dinner I was supposed to take her to, so she tried to shoot me with my gun when I got out of the shower, fortunately she didn't quite understand the concept of a safety."

"I'm guessing that didn't last much longer."

"No." He paused. "I'd like to figure out what's going on with us, but if you want me to leave and just stick to being friends then I'm fine with that too."

Lindsay looked at him.

"Now would be a good time to say something." Danny prompted.

Lindsay set her food down on the table and then took Danny's carton from him and set that next to it.

"We're scientists lets try a little experiment." Lindsay suggested. She kissed him before Danny had a chance to ask what kind of experiment.

"How did it turn out for you?" Danny asked trying to catch his breath.

"I think it needs to be repeated just to be safe." Lindsay kissed him again as she climbed into his lap. Danny wrapped his arms around her to hold her in place. "We need to take this slowly, we still have to work together."

"You need to get off my lap if you want to take it that slowly."

"Sorry." Lindsay moved off of him.

"It's okay." Danny assured. "So you're really going to let me take you out some time?"

"Well you did tell Stella you'd take me to the Empire State Building." Lindsay reminded him.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

"Do you want to watch a movie?" Lindsay suggested.

"Sure. No chick flicks."

"Independence Day?" Lindsay suggested.

"Sounds good." Lindsay put the movie on and curled up on the couch, eating their Chinese food.

Every now and then Danny would glance at her, then look away when she caught his eye. He'd then shuffle slightly closer.

They were sat right next to each other when the little alien appeared from inside the larger alien which caused Lindsay to jump knocking Danny's arm which sent his beer flying all over her top.

"I'm sorry." He apologised.

"It's my fault. However many times I watch this movie that part always makes me jump even though I know its coming. I'm going to sponge this out before it stains. I'll be right back."

Lindsay headed for the bathroom.

A minute later the phone rang.

"Danny can you get that? It's probably my Mom."

"You want me to answer the phone to your mother?" Danny questioned.

"Just tell her who you are and that you gave me a ride home from work." Lindsay replied.

"Okay." Danny paused the movie and got up and grabbed the phone. "Lindsay Monroe's residence."

"_Danny?"_

"Hey Mac." Danny frowned.

"_This is beginning to become a habit."_

"Lindsay had to go to the bathroom so she asked me to get the phone." Danny explained.

"_I need to speak with her."_

"Okay." Danny walked over to the bathroom and tapped on the door. "Lindsay, it's Mac. He needs to talk to you."

Lindsay opened the door.

"Sorry." She mouthed as she took the phone from him. "Hey Mac."

"_Lindsay. About Danny."_

"I'm a big girl; I can take care of myself."

"_Why does everyone assume I'm against people having personal lives? As long as it doesn't affect your job then I don't care."_

"Sorry Mac." Lindsay apologised.

"_I was going to tell you what I told Danny, it's probably not a good idea for him to answer your phone unless you've hired him as your secretary."_

"I don't think he's that good at dictation, even for a cop." Lindsay winked at Danny. "But I don't think that's why you called."

Mac proceeded to give the real reason he called.

"When?... I'll come in first thing in the morning and go over the files… Thank you for letting me know…. Night Mac." She hung up.

"What was all that about?" Danny inquired.

"Mac doesn't think you should answer my phone unless I've hired you as my secretary." Lindsay explained.

"Right." Danny went and sat back down.

"And the court case that I was supposed to testify at got moved up a week so I'm due in court at 11 tomorrow. Mac thought I should know."

"You have to love how much notice DA's give you." Danny stated. "If you have court in the morning I should probably go."

"You can stay and watch the rest of the movie if you want?" Lindsay suggested. "Beside I could do with your opinion."

"My opinion on what?"

"I can never decide what to wear to court."

"I was told by a jury consultant once that blue is a good colour." Danny suggested.

"Blue is good. Put the movie back on while I go and raid my closet."

"Yes ma'am."

"Don't call me ma'am." Lindsay warned as she headed to her bedroom.

Once the movie was over and Lindsay's outfit had been picked, Danny helped her clear up the remains of their dinner.

"I should get going." Danny stuffed his hand into his pockets.

"Okay." Lindsay agreed.

"Lock the door after I leave, and I'll see you tomorrow." Danny told her as he opened the door.

"Danny." Lindsay said.

"Yeah?"

Lindsay pushed him back against the door and kissed him. Danny's hands went to her hips to steady her.

"That's some goodnight kiss Montana."

"I try."

"You're making it really difficult for me to leave."

"So stay?" Lindsay suggested.

"As much as I'd like that, I agree with your whole taking it slowly idea. We should at least have one date."

"That pretty much screws with my rule."

"What rule?"

"No sex on the first date." Lindsay replied.

"I'll figure something out." He gave her a quick kiss. "I'll see you at work. Night Montana."

"Night Danny."

Lindsay fastened the locks and leant against it pressing her fingers against her lips and smiling. It had been a good night.

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: I thought you all deserved a second post today for all the great reviews.

Lindsay walked into the break room to grab some coffee before she made a start on reviewing the evidence for her case.

She was dressed in black ankle boots, a blue pinstripe suit, with a white shirt underneath, her hair swept up and held in place with a clip and she had on the lightest of makeup.

"Um um um Miss Monroe." Flack said.

"You didn't have to get all dressed up for us." Hawkes told her.

"Lucky for you I didn't. I got dressed for the jury, someone told me juries like blue for some reason."

"Jury?" Hawkes questioned.

"Mac called last night, my court case got moved up a week, and I have to be there by 11. Excuse me." Lindsay picked up her coffee.

"Hey Lindsay you look great." Stella told her. "Just relax and answer the questions honestly, the evidence is solid."

"I know." Lindsay replied. "By the way Mac is trying to hire Danny out as a secretary."

"I don't see that working." Stella stated.

"Me either. I have to go and review the evidence."

"Good luck." Stella told her.

"Thanks."

Stella entered the break room to get her morning coffee and greeted Hawkes and Flack who were discussing their case.

"Coffee." Danny begged as he walked in looking exhausted.

"What were you doing last night?" Stella asked handing him a cup.

"One of my neighbours is a nurse, she got home from work at 2 and decided to take a shower and broke the faucet so water was spewing everywhere. Since the super is on vacation this week, she woke me up to see if I could fix it so she didn't have to call out a plumber. My building has a stupid plumbing situation; if you switch off the water in one apartment it switches the water off for the whole floor."

"So you gallantly helped her fix it." Hawkes said.

"When a hysterical soaking wet woman turns up at your door in the middle of the night you have to help." Danny stated.

"It's your civic duty." Flack agreed.

"Well it's good to know if being a cop doesn't work out that you have options." Stella told him.

"Options?" Danny questioned.

"Plumber or I understand Mac is trying to hire you out as a secretary." Stella took a sip of her coffee.

"Who told you that?" Danny inquired.

"Lindsay."

"Talking of Lindsay she looks good today." Hawkes commented.

"Blue is definitely her colour." Flack agreed.

"What?" Danny questioned.

"Her court date got moved up and she has this blue pinstripe suit on." Hawkes explained.

"I know." Danny replied.

"I thought you hadn't seen her this morning."

"I haven't." Danny responded.

"Then how did you…" Hawkes started to ask.

"Have they found our suspect yet Stella?" Danny interrupted changing the subject.

"I don't think so."

"I'll go and check." Danny took his coffee and left.

"Did we miss something?" Hawkes inquired.

"It turns out they aren't exactly as clueless as we all thought." Stella replied.

"How long has that been going on?" Flack asked.

"A couple days." Stella answered. "I think they are still figuring out where they stand."

"Interesting."

CSI NY

"Hey." Danny said as he walked into the room where Lindsay was reviewing the files.

"Oh hey." She smiled at him.

"Hawkes is right you do look good."

"Thanks." Lindsay blushed slightly. "You on the other hand."

"My neighbour burst her pipes literally, so I spent four hours trying to fix it so she didn't have to call out a plumber at a couple hundred bucks an hour." Danny explained.

"That was nice of you." Lindsay agreed. "And it works a lot quicker if you have that putty stuff. You mix it together and it gets hot and you put it over the leak and it seals it."

"You couldn't have mentioned that before I spent hours with ratchets?" Danny asked.

"You didn't ask. It works up you can have the job properly fixed." She paused. "My uncle is a plumber. I spent a summer helping him out."

"So I should have called you." Danny crossed his arms.

"I have to finish going over these, I only have a few hours." Lindsay asked. "Can we talk to later?"

"Okay." Danny agreed. "Good luck Monroe."

"Thanks." Lindsay smiled.

TBC


	8. Chapter 8

Lindsay pulled the clip out of her hair as she exited the elevator and began stomping through the hallways towards the locker room stripping out of her jacket as she went.

"Hey Montana." Danny who was talking to one of the lab techs as she passed greeted her.

"Not now Danny, I'm not in the mood." Lindsay kept on walking.

"Ouch what did you do to her?" The tech asked.

"I have no idea." Danny replied. "Excuse me."

Rather than go after her himself, Danny went into the near by room to where Stella was working.

"Hey Stella."

"I haven't found anything probative yet." Stella told him.

"Could you go and talk to Lindsay?" Danny inquired.

"She's back?" Stella asked.

"Yes, and she looks a little pissed off. She already snapped at me, I think she was headed towards the locker room."

"I'll go and talk to her. Keep looking for trace."

…

Lindsay had dropped her jacket, badge and a hair clip onto one of the benches while she slid down the cool lockers so she was sat on the floor her eyes closed.

"Didn't go well?" Stella asked.

"I hate lawyers." Lindsay groaned.

"What happened I thought the evidence was solid?"

"It is." Lindsay replied. "When the defence lawyer couldn't argue against the evidence he turned it into a forum on me. I was involved in a case about three years; it was just after I joined CSI and a piece of crucial evidence got tainted, it wasn't anything to do with me but it got the case thrown out, he had to bring it. He wanted to go through every detail of my life and find any little imperfection that he could use to taint my reputation."

"The DA should have objected."

"He did, but the judge let him do it up to a point."

"That's the way it goes sometimes kid."

"I hate going to court." Lindsay sighed leaning her head back against the locker.

"But the jury will see through it, they are smarter than the lawyer was giving them credit for the can see that he was attacking you because he couldn't attack the evidence." Stella told her.

"I hope so. The fact that I once had a parking ticket at a crime scene which they took care of should be a reason to let a guy go."

"No." Stella agreed. "How about we go down the block and I'll buy you a decent cup of coffee and a chocolate doughnut with sprinkles?" Stella offered.

"Comfort police food."

"Of course." Stella smiled.

"Okay."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Feeling better?"

"My desire to shoot the lawyer is waning."

"That's a start." Stella stated.

"I think we should keep the chocolate coming." Lindsay stated.

"You might want to tell Danny you're not mad at him as well when we get back." Stella suggested.

"I'll take him some coffee, I wasn't mad at him; I just didn't want to talk right then."

"Danny's pretty easy going he'll understand." Stella pointed out.

"I know."

"So what is exactly going on between the two of you?"

"Why do you ask?" Lindsay inquired.

"Mac explained the secretary comment to me."

"We were watching a movie and I knocked his arm and spilt beer over me. I was trying to sponge it out when Mac called, which is why I told Danny to answer the phone." Lindsay explained.

"I think that could be called avoiding the question Detective."

"I don't know." Lindsay replied. "We're still trying to figure that out."

"Despite his reputation Danny's one of the good guys."

"I know." Lindsay agreed. "You know he calls me Montana to make me blush."

"I knew it had to something like that. Does it bother you?"

"It used to, but I got used it. On the odd occasion he calls me Lindsay it sounds strange."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Danny." Lindsay pushed open the door to the room he was working in.

"Monroe."

"I bought you some coffee as an apology. It was just bad timing, since the defence lawyer couldn't shoot down the evidence he tried to shoot down my reputation instead."

"Do you want me to have him arrested?" Danny offered.

"It's sweet of you to offer but I'll be fine. Stella's been feeding me coffee and chocolate doughnuts. I'm sorry I snapped."

"We all have bad court appearances." Danny shrugged. "I'll just packed this up there isn't any trace anyway."

"Okay." Lindsay agreed.

TBC


	9. Chapter 9

"So what are you doing on Sunday?" Danny asked Lindsay as they processed a scene.

"Apart from having everyone over for brunch?" Lindsay inquired. "That depends. Tell me what you have in mind and I'll tell you whether I'm busy or not."

"You've definitely started picking up on the big city way of thinking."

"What did you have in mind?" Lindsay inquired as she dusted for prints.

"I have Yankees tickets."

"You want to take me to a baseball game." Lindsay concluded.

"You like baseball right?" Danny questioned.

"I like baseball, football, basketball but I don't like ice hockey."

"You don't like hockey?" Flack who had come in for the end of her statement questioned.

"Not really, it's too cold and it moves too fast." Lindsay replied.

"You never placed hockey on the frozen pond out back, or are you more the figure skating type?" Flack questioned.

"I didn't say I couldn't play hockey, I just said I don't like it and I can ice skate although I don't since I almost fell through the ice once."

"You almost fell through the ice?" Danny questioned.

"My foot went through, but luckily my brother was there to pull me out."

"You have a brother?" Flack questioned.

"Two and a sister." Lindsay replied. "I've got prints and a hair."

"Hopefully they are someone other than our vics." Danny said.

"Are you coming to brunch on Sunday?" Lindsay asked Flack.

"Of course." He rubbed his hands together. "Do you want me to bring anything?"

"Eggs." Lindsay replied. Flack looked a little shocked.

"I think that's the first time anyone has ever given him that answer before." Danny joked.

"Eggs?"

"You can't make scrambled eggs without eggs." Lindsay pointed out. "Danny the other thing sounds good, I'll check the bathroom."

Flack looked at Danny.

"What? You can argue with her logic and since people have to work I think Mimosa's are out of the question." Danny countered. "Did you find anything out?"

"Neighbours didn't hear anything. She only moved in a few weeks ago."

CSI NY CSI NY

"I heard you stumped Flack earlier." Stella commented.

"He asked what he could bring to brunch on Sunday. I don't think he was expecting me to tell him eggs."

"I'm bringing coffee, Mac's bringing orange juice, Hawkes is bringing rolls, eggs is a reasonable thing to bring. But what's Danny bringing?"

"Danny's getting roped into helping me cook."

"Does he know that?" Stella asked.

"Not yet."

"How did your dinner go last night?" Stella inquired.

"I had a great time." Lindsay replied. "I think might have annoyed him slightly by offering to go dutch."

"That would have annoyed his sensibilities."

"My mother always told me never go out to dinner with someone unless you can afford to pay for it. Which actually worked out well when I went on a date with this DEA agent who ditched me in the middle of dinner because he saw a guy he was looking for out the window and stuck me with the bill."

"No such thing as a free meal."

"It's a shame because he was really cute." Lindsay recalled.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Try this." Danny handed Lindsay a piece of the strawberry he was cutting up. Lindsay was sat on the counter in her apartment.

"Umm." Lindsay licked the juice from her thumb. "That's good."

"Let me see about that." Danny stepped between her legs and nipped at her lips.

"That's not bad either." Lindsay said.

"I'll give you not bad." Danny placed a hand either side of her and kissed her with more intensity.

"You know it's nine thirty." Lindsay pointed out.

"I'd noticed." Danny said in between kisses.

"It's a bit late to go all across town by yourself. Even for a cop."

"What are you saying?" Danny asked.

"Want to stay over?" Lindsay inquired kissing him more.

"Are you sure we're ready for that?"

"We've been out practically every night this week." Lindsay told him.

"Okay." Danny agreed.

"Good."

TBC


	10. Chapter 10

Lindsay woke Danny with a kiss.

"Good morning." He mumbled.

"Morning. I made you some coffee."

"Thanks." He opened his eyes. "You're dressed."

"Some of us have to be at work in less than an hour." Lindsay reminded him.

Danny tugged Lindsay's arm so she fell across him so he could kiss her.

"Good morning to you too." Lindsay smiled.

"Last night was great."

"You won't hear any arguments from me." Lindsay agreed. "But I do have to go to work."

"Call in sick." Danny suggested.

"We promised Mac that this would affect our jobs, I think if we both called in sick he'd notice." Lindsay kissed him.

"I guess I should get up then."

Lindsay grabbed some keys from the night stand and dangled them in front of him.

"Make yourself at home. Just lock up when you leave."

"You're giving me keys to your apartment?"

"You're a cop, I know where you live and work and more importantly I trust you." She told him. "Just don't go through my underwear drawer."

"Why would I…" He trailed off. "What happened?"

"Let's just say I burnt everything and started over." Lindsay gave him another kiss. "Help yourself to anything in the kitchen; I'll see you in couple hours." Danny didn't have to be at work until noon.

"I don't get a kiss goodbye Montana?" Danny asked as she started to leave.

Lindsay crossed back and gave him a kiss.

"Goodbye."

CSI NY CSI NY

"You know you haven't stopped smiling all morning." Stella told Lindsay.

"What?"

"You're smiling."

"I'm in a good mood." Lindsay shrugged.

"Would Danny have anything to do with that?"

"Maybe." Lindsay replied.

"Oh really." Stella raised her eyebrows.

"I'll be in the print lab." Lindsay excused herself.

CSI NY CSI NY

Danny whistled as he entered the break room. Hawkes was in there changing his shirt.

"Morning." Danny said.

"Morning." Hawkes echoed.

Danny had already gone home and changed. He stuffed his things into the locker.

"So you're in a good mood today." Hawkes commented.

"Is that a crime?" Danny asked.

"No. But it wouldn't happen to have anything to do with a certain woman from Montana would it?"

"Why'd you ask that?" Danny inquired as he closed his locker door.

"Because rumour has it she hasn't stopped smiling all morning."

"Since that isn't a crime, good for her." Danny replied. "I have to go and check on my DNA results from yesterday, I got stuck in a queue after Mac's tests."

"Danny tell you anything?" Stella asked when she caught up with Hawkes later.

"Being in a good mood isn't a crime."

"That's about as much as I got out of Lindsay too."

CSI NY CSI NY

"I finally got the DNA back from the case we were working yesterday." Danny said walking into the room where Lindsay was working. "It matched the date."

"I guess you haven't talked to Flack or got the note I left on your computer monitor."

"No. What did I miss?" Danny asked.

"Flack went to talk to him, he knocked on the door called out NYPD and the guy came to the door crying and confessed."

"He confessed?"

"As soon as he opened the door." Lindsay confirmed.

"I wish all our cases ended that easily."

"I'm working a stabbing with Stella now. I'm sure Mac will have something for you."

"Right." Danny paused. "I'll give you your key back later."

"Keep it for now." Lindsay suggested.

"Keep it?" Danny questioned.

"It's always useful to have someone with a spare key in case I lock myself out."

"Right."

"And you can let yourself in." She added.

"Lindsay did you find…" Stella stopped. "Hey Danny."

"Hey Stella. I'll just be going to find Mac." Danny left.

"He just dropped by to tell me the DNA results from our case yesterday. He didn't get my note that the guy confessed before Flack could ask him a question." Lindsay explained. "What did you need?"

TBC


	11. Chapter 11

Lindsay stood in the doorway of the office she shared with Danny watching him. It was Saturday night and she had just handed in her report to Mac.

"How's it going?" She inquired.

"Slowly. Why does there have to do so much paperwork?"

"Because lawyers can't understand the science, so we have to simplify it for them so they can complicate it for the jury in legalese." Lindsay replied.

"Ah."

"So I was thinking of heading home and ordering a pizza."

"Give me twenty minutes to finish this and I'll pay for the pizza."

"Deal." Lindsay smiled. "I'll go and grab some coffee."

"Mac my report." Danny said as he dropped it off.

"Thanks Danny." Mac noticed Lindsay waiting down the hall for Danny through the glass. "Make sure she gets home okay."

"I was already planning on it." Danny replied. "I'll see you at brunch."

"Night Danny."

"Night Mac."

Danny walked out to where Lindsay was stood.

"Let's go." He told her.

"Everything okay?" Lindsay inquired.

"It's fine. What do you want on the pizza?"

"Anything is fine with me, just make sure it's deep dish. I'm not a big fan of thin pizza crusts." Lindsay replied.

Danny ordered the pizza on the way to Lindsay's apartment so they got there at roughly at the same time.

Lindsay kissed him as she pulled him into her apartment. Danny was trying very hard not to drop the pizza.

"What about the pizza?" He asked.

"It's better cold." Lindsay replied.

"Can't argue with that." He dropped it on the table as he started to help her take her clothes off. "You know you're pretty insatiable Montana."

"You say that's like it's a bad thing." Lindsay said as she helped him off with his shirt.

"Definitely not a bad thing. But we've totally screwed up the take it slow idea."

"What do they say about everything changing in a New York minute?"

"You're quoting Don Henley lyrics at me?" Danny asked.

"I prefer the Eagles version."

"It's about a guy who is so depressed he fakes his own death to disappear." Danny pointed out.

"Do you really want to debate this right now?" Lindsay inquired.

"No."

"I didn't think so."

CSI NY CSI NY

"This is good pizza." Lindsay said as she sat on the couch dressed only in Danny's shirt. Danny was sat next to her in his boxer shorts.

"It's not bad." He agreed.

"You know I still haven't seen the Empire State Building."

"We'll get around to it." Danny replied. "Do you like it in New York?"

"Some things I like and some things I don't. My parents were against me moving here after 9/11."

"We were all there that day helping out."

"I'd guessed."

"Mac's wife Claire worked there, in the second tower. He knew the moment the second plane hit that she was dead. You could tell by the look on his face. They found her body a few days later."

"What was she like?"

"Claire? Beautiful, smart, funny, she knew exactly how to make Mac lighten up. On nights where we were working late on a case she used to bring us food to make sure we took a break and ate. She was real good friends with Stella too. Mac was real broken up, he didn't speak to anyone for about a week after they found her, he just helped sift through the debris. Stella managed to finally get through to him."

"We watched it on TV." Lindsay said.

"We heard them hit. I'll never forget any of it. The sounds, the smells. I had nightmares for months afterwards. We knew a couple of the other cops that died too." He paused. "How did we get on to this?"

"It doesn't matter." Lindsay replied. "So what do you think the Yankees chances are of winning tomorrow?"

"Nice subject change."

"I try my best."

Danny leant over and kissed her.

"That's a good way to change the subject too." Lindsay smiled.

TBC


	12. Chapter 12

Lindsay hunted around her apartment trying to straighten things up and finding all the clothes they had discarded the night before.

When she grabbed everything she went and dumped it on Danny's sleeping form.

"What?" Danny spluttered awake.

"Good morning sunshine."

"Do you always wake people up so eloquently?"

"Well the people we work with will be here in two hours and they are trained to spot things where they shouldn't be. What exactly were you wearing yesterday?"

"What?" Danny asked.

"Clothes." Lindsay simplified. "Have I got everything?"

"Lindsay I'm pretty sure they all know we're sleeping together."

"You just called me Lindsay."

"I noticed." Danny replied. "Relax."

"Danny I'd rather not have my boss find my underwear flung somewhere." Lindsay pointed.

"Well all my stuff is here. But you might want to find your bra."

"I found it." She picked it up of the floor.

"Then you have nothing to worry about."

"I'm not used to having people over."

"You'll do great. If you want I can distract you for a while?" He offered.

"I have things to do."

"I can be quick." Danny offered.

"That's not something to brag about."

Half an hour later they were both dressed, Danny had shoved any evidence that he had spent the night at Lindsay's into the back of her closet.

"So what do you want me to do?" Danny asked.

"Run to the store for some milk." Lindsay requested.

"That wasn't what I was expecting you to say."

"And butter milk, maybe some… You know what it would just be easier if I made you a list."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey Danny." Hawkes caught up with him outside Lindsay's building when he returned with the sack of groceries.

"Morning. You're early."

"I'd already read the paper and I didn't think Lindsay would mind." He paused. "You're here early too."

"I got roped into helping. I stupidly asked what I could do, she wanted me to get milk at the store which turned into a whole list of other things and here we are."

"Let me ring the buzzer for you." Hawkes offered.

"The key is in my pocket if you want to grab it."

"She gave you a key?"

"She said it was easier for me to let myself back in." Which was almost true.

Hawkes took the key from his pocket and opened the door and then the one to Lindsay's apartment.

"Yo Montana." Danny called when he entered. "Hawkes is here."

"Hey." Lindsay walked out of the kitchen wiping her hands on a towel.

"Sorry I'm early."

"It's fine."

"I brought the rolls and some croissants because they smelt good."

"Thanks." Lindsay took the proffered bag from him. "Do you want something to drink?"

"What no hi Danny thanks for going to the store?" Danny asked.

"Hi Danny thanks for going to the store." Lindsay repeated. "You can set it on the counter."

"I'm fine." Hawkes told her.

"Why don't you take a seat? The remote control is on the coffee table if you want to watch TV. This is going to take a while."

"Thanks."

"There's your change." Danny set it down on the counter next to the groceries he was unpacking. "I threw in a few things that weren't on your list so I owe you about eight bucks."

"Don't worry about it." Lindsay told him.

"By the way you have flour on your nose." He wiped it off.

"Thanks." Lindsay replied. "Why don't you keep Hawkes entertained?" She suggested.

"Are these your brothers and sister?" Hawkes appeared in the door with a photograph frame.

Lindsay diverted her attention away from Danny.

"Yes. That's my baby sister Becky; she's in grad school at Harvard studying applied mathematics."

"Smart." Hawkes said.

"That's my older brother Adam; he's helps run the ranch when he's not performing with his band around the local towns. And that's my brother Clay." Lindsay pointed out.

"You're brother is called Clay?" Danny questioned.

"It's short for Clayton and don't make fun of it or I won't get you free tickets the next time the Colts are in town to play the Giants."

"What?" Danny was a little confused.

"Clay's one the assistant coaches for the Colts, he used to a coach for the 49ers. Why do you think I know so much about football?" Lindsay asked.

"How come you never mentioned that before?" Danny inquired.

"You never asked." Lindsay shrugged. "He went to college on a football scholarship, he would have turned pro but he tore up his knee in the last game he played. So he turned to coaching instead."

"If he doesn't want to go with you I will." Hawkes told her.

"I'll keep that in mind." Lindsay replied.

TBC


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: A second post since we're nearing a 100 reviews hopefully this will push it over the edge.

Hawkes answered the door to Mac and Stella.

"Hey." Stella greeted him.

"Lindsay is a little busy." Hawkes informed them. "And Danny's trying to figure out the extending table."

"Monroe how does this thing work?" Danny called.

"Hi." Lindsay said as she came of the kitchen. "Excuse me a second." She walked into the other room. "Move." She told Danny. Within thirty seconds Lindsay had the table set up.

"Where did you get this thing anyway?" Danny inquired.

"My grandfather made it." Lindsay replied.

"Oh." Danny stopped himself from saying the insult he was about to make.

"I'm kidding. The movers broke my table and gave me this as a replacement. Sorry about that." Lindsay turned back to Stella and Mac who had hung up their jackets.

"We put the coffee and juice on the counter." Stella told her.

"Thanks. Make yourselves at home. We're just waiting for Don and Danny to set the table."

"I'm working on it." Danny replied.

"Why don't I help you?" Stella suggested.

CSI NY CSI NY

Fifteen minutes later they were all sat around the table.

"Do they try to pile on the pounds in Montana?" Flack inquired.

"If you're spending twelve hours wrangling cattle a decent breakfast helps." Lindsay shrugged.

"You wrangle cattle?" Flack questioned.

"I can rope a calf with the best of them."

"Now that I'd pay to see." Hawkes said.

"She had a horse called Gee-Gee when she was a kid." Danny added.

"Gee-Gee?" Hawkes questioned.

"The orphanage had a cat called Kitty that used to sleep on my bed when I was a kid." Stella pointed out.

"None of which beats the fact that Lindsay's brother is an assistant coach with the Indianapolis Colts." Hawkes stated.

"Seriously?" Flack questioned.

"Yes."

"How come you never mention it before?"

"No-one asked." Lindsay shrugged. "Beside Mac knew."

"Leave me out of this." Mac suggested.

"Have you met any of them?" Flack asked.

"A few. I knew more of the team when he worked with the 49ers. I have some great picture of when they all dressed up for Clay's bachelor party."

"The 49ers?" Flack questioned.

"I guess sometimes it's who you know." Stella smiled.

"He threatened to set the defensive line on Becky's ex."

"The maths genius." Hawkes recalled. "She was telling me about them earlier." He explained.

"Sports makes sense to Clay, with Adam it was music, I understood chemistry and physics and Becky got math. I'll show you the scrapbooks later."

"Scrapbooks?" Stella asked.

"My mother broke her leg in two places and was stuck in bed for two months, so she made us all these proper scrapbooks. I think I have about ten at last count. She sends me more pages periodically."

Her phone rang.

"Excuse me." Lindsay got up and grabbed the cordless phone. "Monroe…. Oh hey Clay we were just talking about you." Lindsay took the phone into the bedroom. "I've got the people I work with over for brunch and they just found out what you do for a living… I think they'll hold you to that… But I don't think that's why you called….. That's great congratulations; you're going to have a real handful. How's Marcie?... Good… Can I call you back later?... No not tonight, I'm going to a Yankees game." She paused. "No a friend invited me… I know… Stop being so over protective… I'll tell him…. I'll call you in a few hours…. I love you too." She hung up. "Sorry about that." Lindsay apologised when she rejoined everyone else.

"Everything okay?" Mac inquired.

"Clay and Marcie just found they are having twins."

"They don't name their kids after states as well do they?" Danny inquired.

"Not so far. Luke, Peter and Grace. Marcie is a saint; I have no idea how she's going to cope with five kids under eight and Clay on the road with the team half the year."

"You just have the three nieces and nephews so far?" Hawkes asked.

"No Adam and Lucy have twin girls, Lindsay Anne and Rebecca Faith. But they call them Annie and Faith to avoid confusion. They're only four and as cute as buttons. Clay also said to tell you if you're nice to me he'll get you in to meet both teams when they are here to play the Giants in October."

…

Mac, Hawkes and Flack's pagers went off as they finished eating.

"Sorry to eat and run." Mac apologised.

"It's okay." Lindsay replied. "Thanks for coming."

"I'll stay and help clear up." Stella offered.

"It was great Lindsay." Hawkes told her. "You're a really good cook."

"I'll just take this with me." Flack said grabbing the last slice of toast. "Thanks for brunch; we should do this again soon."

"Only if you're cooking."

"You don't want him to cook, you'd get food poisoning." Danny told her.

"He set his stove on fire trying to boil an egg." Stella explained.

"It's not my fault that someone knocked on the door and distracted me." Flack pointed out. "I'll see tomorrow."

"Bye." Lindsay saw them out.

"So what do you have planned for the rest of the day?" Stella asked as helped grabbed the plates.

"I'll show you the scrapbooks if you want to stick around for a while." Lindsay offered. "You have to see a picture of some of the team dressed as cheerleaders."

"You have pictures of the 49ers dressed in cheerleader outfits? You could make a ton selling that on the internet." Danny pointed out.

"I think they would know who sold it. There were only a few of us who have copies."

"Sounds good to me." Stella agreed. "But it's going to take a while to do these dishes."

"I have a dishwasher." Lindsay replied. "The place came with it. That should take care of most of this. I still have to wash all the pots and pans by hand." Lindsay glanced at Danny.

"Is this where you expect me to offer to do the dishes?" Danny asked.

"That's nice of you Danny." Stella told him. "Wear gloves so you don't get dish pan hands." She advised.

TBC


	14. Chapter 14

"Uh." Lindsay sank on to her couch when Stella had left. "Who thought having people over for brunch was so exhausting?"

"Well you did run around like a headless chicken."

"Nice analogy."

"Do chickens really run around headless?" Danny sat down next to her.

"I wouldn't know. But I'll run right out and find one for you try it."

"Thanks." Danny patted her hand.

"Are you staying around?" Lindsay leant her head against his shoulder.

"I have to go home and do some laundry otherwise I won't have anything to wear to work this week."

Lindsay glanced at him.

"I'm a cop I can afford to have everything dry cleaned. Want to come with me?"

"You want me to do your laundry?" Lindsay asked.

"If you're offering." He joked. "But I figured you could keep me company, hang out until we went to the game. We both have to be work tomorrow at the same time so you can stay over if you want."

Lindsay pulled back and looked at him.

"Or you can stay here and we can try that phone sex thing you brought up a while back." He winked at her.

"I told you I didn't understand the thrill of that. Besides I don't think that's in NYPD's calling plan. I prefer to be able to touch."

"I noticed." Danny smiled. "So it's you object to staying at my apartment?"

"No. You've just never brought it up before."

"It just turned out that way. I remember hearing somewhere that women prefer their own beds for some reason."

"It's safer."

"How many cases have we had where women are dead in their own beds?"

"Theoretically. If you're in your own bed you know where everything is and who has exactly been in that bed." Lindsay replied. "And you know when the sheets have been changed last."

"Okay." Danny sighed.

"I have to call Clay back and pack a bag." Lindsay told him.

"I thought you spoke to him."

"I told him I'd call him back and he said to tell you to be nice or he really would set the defensive line on me."

"I'd just have them arrest for assaulting a cop, terrible press." Danny joked. "You told your brother about me?"

"No, I just told him that a friend was taking me to a Yankees game, which to my brother automatically meant to a guy. Give me half an hour?"

"Okay." He kissed her. "So I'm your friend huh?"

"I don't honestly know what you are. Are we ready to put labels on this yet?"

"I have no idea." Danny replied.

"That's what I thought. I'll call Clay while I throw a few things in a bag."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay was telling him about her nieces and nephews while they took the subway to his apartment. Lindsay had already changed into something more suitable for a ball game.

"So do you want kids?" Danny asked her.

"Isn't it a bit early to be asking that?" Lindsay inquired.

"I didn't mean with me, I meant generally, hypothetically sometime in the future."

"I know." Lindsay replied. "I want kids eventually but I'd like to get married first. But I'm only 26 so I have time." She paused. "Another year closer to thirty."

"What?"

"It's my birthday the end of next month." She explained.

"What is it with women and thirty? I'm 31 it's not a problem."

"Thirty is one major step closer to forty, which is a major step closer to fifty." Lindsay replied.

"Right." Danny wasn't quite sure that counted as a definitive answer.

"Do you want kids?" Lindsay inquired.

"Hadn't really thought about it. I'm not against the idea."

"I think that's enough of the deep and the hypotheticals as this is our stop." Lindsay said.

"You've been to my apartment once how do you which is my subway stop?" Danny inquired as they stood up.

"I have a subway map." Lindsay replied. "And that subway surfer case was a few couple stops from here."

"You know you should dress for crime scenes more often." Danny told her.

"I don't think so, do you know how much it cost to get that dress dry cleaned from all the dust and dirt?"

"But you did look good in it."

"I think you mentioned that." Lindsay smiled. "I'll stick to think cheaper clothes that I can replace more easily when I get the inevitable decomp."

"I hate those."

"I had a case once with a decomp and you the stage that you get to where you don't notice the smell quite so much because you've gotten used to it. I'd take about three shower and used so many lemons that my hair got blonde highlights when I went into the sun, but I walked by this suspect they brought in, a big biker guy, and he passed out from the smell."

"The bigger they are the harder they fall." Danny joked.


	15. Chapter 15

Lindsay listened as Danny explained some obscure baseball rule to her as they waited for the teams to switch places for the bottom of the first.

She didn't have the heart to tell him that she already knew the rule because she had dated the star pitcher in high school and she had played regularly with her brothers and their friends when they didn't have enough people to play.

"So that's basically how it works."

"I think I understand." Lindsay replied. "I'm going to go to the bathroom."

"Okay." Danny replied.

Lindsay finally made it back to her seat fifteen minutes later.

"Here." She handed him a loaded hotdog.

"Thanks." He replied. He grabbed one of the sodas she had purchased as well. "Diet." He said after taking a sip.

"That's mine."

"I've seen what you eat? Why drink diet soda?" He asked as they traded drinks.

"I like diet soda." Lindsay replied. "Besides you shouldn't drink too much of it all the carbon dioxide to make the bubbles can't be good for you."

"Did you ever make a soda bottle explode?" Danny inquired.

"Of course. One of Becky's math professors did it too in the middle of class, and told everyone to duck while he put up an umbrella."

Lindsay glanced back at the game and made a comment about the next player up at bat. Danny looked at her.

"What? I told I liked baseball."

"You knew what I was explaining to you earlier didn't you?" He asked.

"Yes."

"Why didn't you stop me?" Danny inquired.

"You were enjoying yourself." Lindsay shrugged. "I thought guys liked teaching women stuff."

"We do."

"So what's the… That's a foul ball."

Danny switched his focus back to the game.

CSI NY CSI NY

It was a few hours later and the bottom of the eighth when Lindsay excused herself to go to the toilet again.

The Yankees were 4-1 up much to Danny's delight.

On her way back Lindsay saw Derek Jeter send the ball flying into the crowd, she saw on the large screen as sailed towards Danny who managed to grab it before it hit him. Lindsay could help but smile and be grateful that she hadn't been there to get hit by the ball.

When the attention went back to game Lindsay made her way back to her seat.

"So anything interesting happen while I was gone?" Lindsay inquired.

"I caught this." Danny proudly showed her the ball.

"I saw." Lindsay replied. "Nice catch."

"Thanks. Do you want to keep it as a souvenir?" Danny inquired.

"You don't want to keep it for evidence?" Lindsay joked knowing what happened last time he'd caught a baseball.

"I think we'll be okay on this one."

"You're giving the ball to the little lady what a waste?" The guy behind them commented.

"I'm not so little." Lindsay turned around and told him. "I'm also a cop." She pulled her badge out of her pocket. "So do you really want start something?"

The guy held up his hands.

Lindsay turned back to watch the rest of the game.

"I guess you told that guy Montana." Danny smiled.

"I can look after myself."

"A badge doesn't hurt." Danny winked at her.

"Watch the rest of the game." Lindsay suggested.

CSI NY CSI NY

"There clean sheets." Danny said as he finished remaking the bed.

"Very impressive. Let me guess you were a hotel maid in a previous life." Lindsay joked.

"Want to see me in a French Maid outfit?" Danny countered.

"Now that's a mental image I didn't need." Lindsay frowned.

"Let me see if I can help you get rid of it." Danny pushed her gently so she fell back on the bed.

"You just made the bed." Lindsay pointed out.

"So help me mess it up a little." He kissed her.

"Convince me." Lindsay requested.

"With pleasure."

TBC


	16. Chapter 16

Lindsay had set the baseball on her desk the following morning while she worked on pulling up another copy of her results for an incompetent DA who had lost them.

"Hey Lindsay." Flack walked in.

"Morning Don." She replied.

"We seem to be light on CSIs today."

"Mac and Stella are somewhere in Uptown a dead socialite and friend of the Mayor's sister's something. Danny and Hawkes have a DB found floating in the Conservatory Water in Central Park and I'm pulling copies of reports for the DA's office since they managed to lose the copies they had."

"Right." He picked up the baseball from her desk. "Since when do you keep a baseball on your desk?" He tossed it in the air.

"Since Derek Jeter tried to brain Danny with it." Lindsay replied.

"What?"

"He took me to a Yankees game last night and top of the ninth Derek Jeter hit the ball and it headed in the direction of Danny's head. He managed to catch it and gave it to me for safe keeping."

"Where were you when this incident occurred?"

"I was on my way back from the restroom." Lindsay replied. "I saw it on the big screen. Nice interrogation technique by the way. Put the ball down."

"Sorry." He put the ball back on the desk.

"I'm guessing this isn't a social call."

"We have a DB about two blocks from here and since it was on my way I thought I'd stop by and see who was available."

"I need two minutes to print this and grab my kit and I'll be with you." Lindsay replied.

"I don't think the dead guy is in any hurry." He said eyeing the ball.

Lindsay stuffed it in a desk drawer and locked it with one hand as she sent the documents to the printer.

CSI NY CSI NY

"I hate this part." Danny said pulling his waders on.

"We need to find out if the gun is in the water." Hawkes told him. "And you lost the toss."

"I know."

"So what did you and Lindsay get up to after we left yesterday?"

"I went home and did some laundry and then we went to a ball game last night where I caught a ball which almost hit my head." Danny replied.

"Ouch." Hawkes said. "So how's it going with Lindsay anyway? You seemed pretty domestic yesterday."

"It's going pretty good."

"What exactly is it?" Hawkes inquired.

"She says it's too early to put labels on it." Danny replied.

"When did she tell you that?" Hawkes asked.

"Yesterday. She told her brother a friend was taking her to a ball game and I made a joke about it. She said it was a little too early to put labels on it."

"What did you say?"

"I agreed with her."

"Oh buddy." Hawkes patted his shoulder.

"What?"

"I don't speak woman at the best of times but even I know that she wanted you to tell her that she's more than just the woman you happen to be sleeping with until the next one comes along."

"What?" Danny looked at him. "Why didn't she say anything?"

"Because women have their own logic, if she puts a label on it she might scare you away but if you do it then she knows what she mean to you. Ask Stella I'm sure she can explain it better than I can."

"You know what that pond is looking better all the time."

CSI NY CSI NY

"How's it going?" Flack asked Lindsay.

"They can take the body now." Lindsay replied. "But I'm still going to be here for a while."

Flack signalled to the coroners assistants that they could pick the body up.

"We still have no ID." Flack told her. "No missing persons reports matching his description."

"They'll run his prints through the system when they get him back." Lindsay stood up. "But since he has no wallet or ID robbery looks likely."

"Or a timely pick pocket who steals from the dead."

"Or a timely pick pocket." Lindsay agreed. "Ouch." She said as she stood up.

"Are you okay?" Flack asked concerned.

"Cramp. I think I've been crouched down too long. I'll be fine in a minute."

"Good I don't want to tell Danny I let you get injured at a crime scene."

"Why would you have to tell Danny?" Lindsay asked.

"Guys tend to want to know when their girlfriends get hurt."

"He'd have to figure out that I was his girlfriend first." Lindsay muttered under her breath.

"What?" Flack asked.

"If I get injured at a crime scene call Mac let him handle the rest."

TBC


	17. Chapter 17

"Hey Marty." Lindsay said when walked into the morgue.

"Detective Monroe, you're looking good today." Dr Marty Pino commented.

"Thanks." Lindsay smiled. "What about our dead guy?"

"Tell me about the baseball flying at Danny and I'll tell you about the dead guy."

"Derek Jeter hit a ball and it went flying at Danny, he caught the ball which is now in my desk drawer. So dead guy?"

"Still no ID on him preliminary cause of death is a heart attack but I need to cut him open to confirm, I'm also waiting on a tox screen."

"So his wallet and ID just disappear or a well timed robber took them?" Lindsay guessed.

"Or a guy points a gun at him, he hands his wallet over and one dead guy from shock."

"That would work too." Lindsay replied.

"On your own for this one?" Marty asked.

"Yes. Anything else I need to know?"

"I found this in his underwear." He handed her an evidence bag.

"In his underwear." She looked at the piece of paper.

"Women keep things in their bras." Marty pointed out.

"Ten bucks for a cab or a phone number." Lindsay stated. "This is too long to be a phone number and are your underpants a good place not to loose something from? Why not a pocket, he had one in his pants and his jacket."

"That's a question for you to answer." Marty stated. "Clothes, shoes, fingernail scrapings, I haven't found any other trace. I'll let you have a final cause of death as soon as I determine it."

"You know my number." Lindsay replied.

"Let me know if and when you get an ID." Marty requested.

"Will do." Lindsay collected her evidence and left.

CSI NY CSI NY

After checking the clothing and shoes for trace or anything else that would be useful and turning up nothing she went to the piece of paper.

His fingerprints had been run through AFIS with no matches so the paper was all she had to go on.

She wrote the number out on another sheet of paper. She checked the paper for a watermark but found none, and then she printed it.

A perfect thumb print appeared but unfortunately it belonged to the victim.

"Lindsay." Mac came into the room.

"Hey Mac."

"I heard you caught a case."

"John Doe in an alley. Preliminary cause of death is a heart attack. He had no wallet on him so he could have been mugged and dropped dead from the shock."

"Let someone know if you need any help." Mac told her.

"Do you keep things in your underpants?" Lindsay asked.

"Excuse me?" Mac was a little shocked by her question.

"I didn't mean that exactly the way it came out. Trace, AFIS, missing persons all drew a blank, the only think I have to go on is a number written on a piece of paper Marty found in his underpants."

"Looks like a bank account number." Mac said looking at it.

"I'm going to run it because otherwise I'm stumped."

CSI NY CSI NY

"I have nothing other than a number which isn't a bank account number or a phone number there is no other evidence to say this guy didn't fall down with a heart attack all on his own." Lindsay told Flack.

"There's no way to ID him?"

"At this point no. Unless someone reports him missing he'll stay a John Doe. I'll keep trying to figure out the number but for now, its natural causes." Lindsay replied. "What did you fall in the pond?" Lindsay noticed a slightly bedraggled and damp Danny walking towards them.

"Don't ask." Danny replied.

"He slipped on our murder weapon." Hawkes said. "He caused quite a splash."

"Please tell me you have pictures." Flack begged.

Danny scowled and stomped off to change.

"Lots, he was slashing around like a baby."

"I'll let you know if I get anything on this number." Lindsay told Flack and disappeared off in the other direction.

"I think there is trouble in paradise." Flack stated.

"Lindsay told her brother a "friend" was taking her to a Yankees game, Danny made a joke and Lindsay said they didn't need to put labels on their relationship yet and Danny agreed with her."

"Ouch. He should know better than that." Flack stated. "I'd better get back to tracking down my John Doe."

"And I have to go and dry out this gun."

TBC


	18. Chapter 18

A/N: A second post just because it's a nice day and I felt like it.

"Can you just call me back if you have any insight?... Thanks Becky." Lindsay hung up sighing. She had spent most of the day trying to figure out what the number meant, but had turned up nothing.

The John Doe was still a John Doe and his death was being recorded as natural causes in lieu of any evidence to the contrary.

Lindsay went and stowed her evidence back in the evidence lock up and then grabbed her jacket and purse from her locker.

"Mac, I'm heading out unless you need any help." She told him.

"We've got things handled here. What about your case?"

"I still have a number I have no idea what it means and no id, but cause of death is a heart attack so unless something comes up it's nothing criminal."

"Okay. I'll see you in the morning."

"Night Mac." Lindsay replied.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay had gone home and taken a long bubble bath. She then changed into her pyjamas and lay on the couch reading a book, soft country music playing in the background. She was just dozing off when there was a knock on the door.

Yawning she set the book on the table and went and looked through the peephole.

"Hey, why didn't you let yourself in?" Lindsay asked when she opened the door to Danny.

"I thought I'd better knock."

"Why?" Lindsay was a little confused.

"In case you're mad at me."

"Why would I be mad at you?"

"I've only seen you once all day and we didn't exactly talk. Then you left without saying goodbye."

"I've spent all day trying ID a John Doe who dropped dead of a heart attack in an alley with no ID or wallet and the only thing we had to go on was a number written on a piece of paper that was tucked into his underwear which as far as I can tell has no meaning."

"I fell in a pond full of water." Danny countered.

"I didn't say goodbye because I didn't know where you were and since my shift was over Mac said I could leave. So why exactly do you think I'm mad at you?"

"Can I come in?" Danny asked.

"Sorry." Lindsay stepped back to let him in. "Do you want something to drink?"

"I'm fine." Danny replied.

They both sat down on the couch.

"So why I am mad?" Lindsay inquired again.

"Maybe mad was the wrong word."

"Danny why don't you just tell me what's bothering you?" Lindsay suggested.

"I was talking to Hawkes and he said something that got me thinking."

"Is this a Sid type revelation?" Lindsay inquired. "Because maybe Medical Examiners are a little more insightful than we gave them credit for."

"Yesterday when we were talking about putting labels on this you didn't want me to agree with you that it was too soon did you?"

Lindsay sat and looked at him for a minute.

"Montana?" Danny prompted.

"Maybe." Lindsay admitted.

"Maybe." Danny echoed.

"It would be nice to know exactly in a general sense what this is."

"That was a well formed sentence." Danny smiled.

"Okay how about brutal honesty?" Lindsay suggested.

"Hit me with it."

"If this is just sex, then its great sex and it will eventually burn itself out. If its something more or at the least the start of something more then we see where it takes us. Knowing one way or the other would be good, but if you're not ready then we can wait."

Danny looked at her.

"You can run out the door if you want. I won't think any less of you."

"How about I stay?" Danny countered and moved closer to her.

"Or you could stay." Lindsay agreed.

When he kissed her Lindsay wasn't quite sure what to make of it.

"It was always more than just sex." Danny told her.

"That's good to know."

Things were getting a little cosier when her phone rang.

"I should get that." Lindsay said.

"Do you have to?" Danny inquired.

Lindsay grabbed the phone from the table.

"Monroe." She answered. "Oh hey Becky, I didn't expect to hear from you this soon… You did?... What…. When?... I have to be at work at 8…. Okay." Lindsay gave her the address of the crime lab. "I'll see you tomorrow. Bye."

"What was that all about?" Danny inquired.

"I called Becky to see if the number meant anything to her, I didn't give her any details of the case just the number. She and her professor are coming tomorrow. Apparently it means something big she can't tell me over the phone."

TBC


	19. Chapter 19

Lindsay had her back pressed against him, their legs tangled, her head sharing the same pillow as Danny, his arm looped over her waist.

Danny pressed a kiss just behind her ear, and then slowly kissed down her neck and across her shoulder. Danny knew the instant she woke up.

"What are you doing?" Lindsay asked.

"If you don't know then I'm doing it wrong."

"Sleep." Lindsay muttered.

"Are you sure?"

"If I don't sleep I'll look tired tomorrow and then Becky will tell Mom and I'll spend the next week on the phone with her while she wants to know why I'm not getting enough sleep."

"Sounds rather dramatic."

"My mother worries." She wriggled out of his grasp and over to the empty side of the bed.

"Where are you going?" Danny asked.

"To sleep."

"Come back here and I'll let you sleep."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

Lindsay moved back into his grasp and closed her eyes.

CSI NY CSI NY

Danny walked into the building and noticed a woman with dark blonde hair stood at the desk with a slightly older man. It took a second but he recognised her.

"Becky Monroe?" He walked over.

"Yes?" The woman turned around.

"Danny Messer, I work with your sister."

"You're the guy who calls her Montana." Becky said recognising the name.

"That would be me. And you're the mathematician."

"Clay wants to know if he should send the defensive line your way." Becky crossed her arms. "I presume you know who he is."

"She mentioned something." Danny stated.

"Becky." The man said.

"Sorry. Danny, this is Professor Matthew Kieln."

"Can I get a couple of visitor passes?" Danny requested. "Rebecca Monroe and Matthew Kieln."

The woman handed them over and made a note of the names.

"I'll take you up."

…

"Wait here." Danny said when they reached the lab where Lindsay was talking to Adam. "Yo Montana." He stepped inside. "Your visitors are here."

"You didn't make a pass at my sister did you?" Lindsay inquired.

"I'm not that stupid." Danny replied.

"Thanks Adam." Lindsay told him and headed outside. "Hey Becky." She gave her sister a hug. "It's good to see you."

"You too Linds. This is Matthew Kieln, he's my thesis advisor. Matt my sister Lindsay."

"It's nice to meet you." Lindsay shook his hand. "You said you knew something about the number."

"Is there somewhere we can talk?" Professor Kieln requested.

"I need to get my boss and the lead detective in on it."

"Try Mac's office." Danny suggested. "I'll find him and Flack and send them over."

"Thanks Danny." Lindsay smiled at him.

"No problem Montana." He winked at her and went to find Mac.

"He's kind of cute." Becky commented.

"Don't tell him that it'll go to his head." Lindsay recommended.

"You like him." Becky stated. "I think we need to have a little chat before I leave."

"How about we deal with why you're here first?" Lindsay suggested as she pushed the door to Mac's office open. "Please take a seat."

It too a few minutes for Mac and Flack to arrive.

"What's this about Lindsay?" Mac inquired.

"Detectives Mac Taylor and Don Flack, this is my sister Becky Monroe and Professor Matthew Kieln of Harvard University."

"It's nice to meet you." Mac said. He looked back to Lindsay for an explanation.

"Why I finally ran out of ideas for that number yesterday, I called Becky to see if the number would mean anything to her. I didn't tell her anything about the case; I just gave her the number." Lindsay explained. "She called me back last night; they know something they couldn't tell me on the phone."

"If it helps any I probably have a higher security clearance than any of you." Matthew stated. "I regularly consult with the NSA, CIA, FBI, and other government agencies."

"I have more limited clearance since I help out on occasion." Becky added.

"What exactly can you tell us about the number?" Mac asked?

TBC


	20. Chapter 20

A/N: A second post to tell you what the number means. I'm only posting this because it's nice weather here and i'm in a good mood.

"It's the man that had the number that I'm more interested in." Matthew Kieln stated. "I presume he's dead."

"What makes you think anyone is dead?" Mac inquired.

"He wouldn't have given the number up willingly and I doubt that NYPD would be trying to find out who he is if he wasn't dead."

Lindsay looked at Mac who nodded in acquiescence. She pulled out a photograph from the file and handed it to Matthew.

"His name is Ronald Simons. He's a mathematics professor at Brown. He is or should I say was currently on sabbatical." Matthew handed Lindsay back the picture.

"Does he have any family we should notify?" Flack asked.

"No. Ron was a genius; he was a good teacher but not exactly a people person. He had no family."

"How did you make an ID from a number?" Mac inquired.

"Ron was part of a group called Pi."

"As in pumpkin?" Flack asked.

"No as in the Greek letter pi. P-I." Becky explained. "It represents a number which is used for amongst other things to determine the circumference of a circle."

"3.14159." Flack stated. "I passed high school Geometry."

"That's just the short version that's used but pi doesn't ever stop or repeat the pattern of numbers." Becky explained.

"And this number has something to do with that?" Lindsay asked.

"Pi is officially a group of the brightest mathematicians in the country. They officially help the government with research."

"And unofficially?" Mac prompted.

"That's classified." Matthew stated. "The number is an identification code of sorts; its part of the pi sequence, every member has an individual code which if there is a problem they have to call in to a number."

"Do you have an idea what he would be doing in Manhattan with only that number on him? No ID, no money." Lindsay replied.

"Ron was slightly paranoid. He hardly ever carried money or ID unless he was going out specifically buy something. He probably has a hotel room somewhere which has a safe in the room, and then he'll have everything inside a couple strong boxes inside the safe. He was a genius."

"You seem to know a lot about this organisation." Mac stated.

"I'm a member." He paused. "How did Ron die?"

"Heart attack." Lindsay replied. "We have no reason to believe otherwise."

"I'd like to take care of the arrangements for his funeral." Matthew requested.

"Does he have a next of kin listed anywhere?" Mac asked. "They'll require that to release the body."

Matthew pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to him.

"The organisation is his next of kin."

"Which is why he kept the number on him knowing someone would eventually connect the dots if something happened to him." Lindsay guessed.

"Very good Ms Monroe."

"Flack why don't you take the Professor down to the morgue and help him get the paperwork started." Mac suggested. "Then try and track down his hotel room."

"Sure thing Mac." Flack stated.

"Lindsay you can take an hour with your sister we'll page you if anything new comes up." Mac told her.

"Thanks Mac."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay and Becky ended up getting coffee down the street.

"It's good to see you Becky."

"It's good to see you too." Becky replied. "Now tell me something."

"What?" Lindsay asked.

"Is he any good in bed?"

"What? Who?" Lindsay was a little surprised at the question.

"The cute cop who insists on calling you Montana." Becky looked at her.

"Why do you think I'm sleeping with him?" Lindsay asked trying to looking nonchalant and failing miserably.

"I saw the way he looked at you. You're either sleeping with him or he has serious crush and since you're blushing I'm guessing the former rather than the latter."

"No comment." Lindsay replied.

"That good huh?" Becky chuckled.

"So how long have you been sleeping with your Professor?" Lindsay flipped the subject around on Becky.

"How did you… I walked right into that one didn't I?"

"Oh yeah." Lindsay smiled. "I'll make you a deal, you don't tell Mom or Dad or Adam or Clay about Danny and I won't tell them about the Professor."

"Deal."

"But do you think sleeping with your Professor is a good idea?"

"He's just my thesis advisor; he doesn't mark my thesis so there isn't a conflict of interest. He's single, in good health and he makes me feel good about myself." Becky stated.

"How long has it been going on?"

"A couple months. You?"

"A couple of weeks. We're still figuring it all out." Lindsay admitted.

TBC


	21. Chapter 21

"So how soon should I be expecting men with shotguns turning up to find out what my intentions are?" Danny asked when he caught up with Lindsay later.

"What?" She was a little confused.

"Your sister I'm presuming knows about us, so the rest of your family will soon." Danny explained.

"You're safe for now, she won't be telling them."

"How did you get her to agree to that?" Danny asked.

"We came to a mutually beneficial agreement."

"What?"

"She won't tell our parents or brothers about you and I won't tell them she's sleeping with her Professor."

"She's sleeping with her Professor?" Danny questioned.

Lindsay looked around fortunately there wasn't anyone else in the room.

"Yes. I didn't actually know she was, but she told me she thought you were cute and wanted to know how you were in bed."

"What?" Danny said. "What did you tell her?"

"I tried changing the subject to her and the Professor thinking her denying would be a good distraction but she slipped up. So neither of us is going to say anything to our family." She paused. "She's not going back to Boston until tomorrow so we're going to have dinner tonight; she told me to invite you too if you didn't have anything planned."

"Your sister wants to have dinner with me?" Danny questioned.

"Look at this way if she likes you, my Mom will like you and she will stop my Dad and my brothers coming after you with a shotgun or a defensive line." Lindsay winked at him.

"What time is dinner?"

"8.30." Lindsay replied. "I'll let you know where."

"Did you get an ID on your vic?"

"Yes. He's a mathematician from Brown who was on sabbatical." Lindsay replied.

CSI NY CSI NY

"So I heard your sister was in town." Stella commented to Lindsay later that day.

"Yes. She came with her Professor to identify my John Doe from yesterday."

"It must have been nice to see her."

"I forgot how much I missed seeing her." Lindsay agreed. "They aren't heading back to Boston until tomorrow since he has to arrange to have the body shipped, actually I'm not sure where, so we're having dinner tonight."

"Did she meet Danny?" Stella inquired.

"Yes."

"And?" Stella prompted.

"She thinks he's cute, but she's not sure about the accent."

"He's from Staten Island he didn't stand much of a chance. Besides take her to parts of Brooklyn and she wouldn't have a clue what they're saying."

"I still have a problem there sometimes. But you get used to it."

"It would be the same if you dumped someone in the middle of a country where they didn't speak the language they'd pick it up soon enough. You just had a head start that most of it is in English." Stella smiled.

"Danny's coming to dinner with us."

"That should be interesting." Stella stated.

"Hopefully he can find something to talk to Matt about. I mean Matt consults on FBI cases."

"Is he cute?" Stella inquired.

"Who?"

"The Professor. Or is he one of those stuffy stereotype Harvard guys?"

"He's in his thirties I would guess and my sister seems to think so."

"Oh really?" Stella nodded knowingly.

"We came to a compromise neither of us is mentioning what we know to our family, which will save us a lot of questions."

"It's nice to have someone who is concerned enough to be overprotective." Stella stated.

"Sorry." Lindsay remembered Stella was an orphan.

"I've got good friends who have my back that counts for a lot."

"And a lot of them have pretty good aim with a gun." Lindsay joked.

"I know." Stella agreed. "For every embarrassing story your sister tells Danny I know one about him."

"You mean more embarrassing than this." Lindsay handed her the pictures that Hawkes had taken of Danny floundering around in the pond.

"Ah he went for a swim. But I'm not sure a boating pond is the best location."

TBC


	22. Chapter 22

Lindsay swayed her hips in time to one of her favourite country songs as she stood in front of her bedroom mirror putting her earrings in. She had already changed into a dress which hugged her curves.

Danny watched, slight voyeuristically, as she didn't know he was there with a smile on his face.

Lindsay turned and jumped slightly as she hadn't been expecting anyone to be there.

"Hi." Danny said.

"How long have you been watching me?"

"I got here about ten minutes ago." Danny admitted. "I called out but the music was a little loud, I guess you didn't hear me."

"So you decided to watch me?"

"I was going to say something but then you started to dance and I forgot what I was going to say. You look amazing."

"Thank you." Lindsay blushed. "I don't get to wear dresses much."

"Is that a hint that you want me to take you out somewhere where you can dress up?" Danny asked.

"No. But I'd like to go on a picnic in Central Park one day and you still have to take me to the Empire State Building."

"I think I can handle that." He gave her a kiss. "Are you almost ready to go?"

"I just need to find some shoes and grab my purse."

"You might want to grab a sweater or something; it's getting a little cold out."

"I'll be a couple minutes."

Lindsay found a comfortable pair of heels, slipped on a light sweater and put her NYPD ID in her purse, along with her wallet, cell phone and keys.

"Ready."

"You still look amazing."

"Let's get through dinner first then we'll see where compliments get you." Lindsay told him.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay had gotten Stella to give her a recommendation for a restaurant as she knew reasonable decent places to eat.

"We have a reservation for 8.30. Monroe for four." Lindsay told the hostess.

"Yes Ms Monroe. Your table isn't quite ready yet, if you'd like to wait at the bar, it won't be long."

"Thank you." Lindsay replied.

They all went to the bar.

"What do you want to drink ladies?" Danny asked.

"Well since it's my first time in New York, I think a Manhattan seems appropriate." Becky stated.

"Sounds good to me." Lindsay agreed.

"Professor?" Danny prompted.

"Soda water with lime and Matt is fine."

"He says alcohol clouds his thinking process." Becky explained.

Danny caught the bartender's attention and placed their drinks order.

"So you've never been to New York?" Danny asked Becky.

"No." Becky replied. "LA for a conference, San Francisco to visit Clay, Indiana to visit Clay, and Boston for Harvard but not New York."

"What do you think of our little city so far?" Danny inquired.

"It's different to what I expected." Becky admitted. "So Linds have you seen all the major tourist attractions."

"I've seen Central Park a lot for work, and the Statue of Liberty for work. Danny's going to take me to see the Empire State Building at some point."

"If we get out of here by 10.30 we should have time." Danny stated.

"Time for what?" Lindsay asked.

"To get up town before 11.15. The last elevator goes up then, but it doesn't close until midnight." Lindsay looked at him. "Becky might as well see the view from the Empire State Building while she's here too."

Lindsay smiled.

"Sounds good." Becky agreed.

Matt's cell phone rang.

"It's Max. I have to get this. Excuse me." He answered the phone. "Matthew Kieln…. I'm in New York for the night…. I had to come and claim Ron Simons body…. No we're having dinner with Becky's sister…. We're on a train back tomorrow… Hang on." He put his hand over the phone. "Becky what time does our train get in tomorrow?"

"11.30, twelve something like that." Becky replied.

Matt relayed the information to Max.

"It can't wait until then?... Okay… What time?..." There was a long pause. "Okay…" He gave the name of the hotel they were staying overnight. "I'll talk to you when we get back." He hung up.

"Everything okay?" Becky inquired.

"Max needs our help on a case."

"Max is the FBI Agent we work with sometimes." Becky explained for Danny and Lindsay's benefit.

"He's going to send a car for us at 5.45, and have Homeland Security fast track us through security so we can catch the 7 o'clock flight back to Boston all on the FBI's tab."

"What about our train reservations?" Becky asked.

"They'll cancel them." Matt assured her. "But I'm not sure the Empire State Building is such a good idea."

"I've seen you stay up for three days straight because there was a problem with an equation for it to only turn out to be that you'd put a plus instead of a minus."

"It changed the outcome significantly." Matt pointed out.

"My point, I don't think staying out to midnight will hurt. Besides if we skip starters we'll get out of here in plenty of time."

"Do Mom and Dad know you work on FBI cases?" Lindsay asked.

"No. They'd freak out, remember when you got shot."

"You got shot?" Danny questioned.

"It was just a graze. I barely even have a scar." Lindsay replied.

"And the small consulting fee I get helps pay the rent."

TBC


	23. Chapter 23

They order both their main courses and desserts together to save time. Both Lindsay and Becky really wanted to see the Empire State Building.

Becky and Lindsay caught up while Matt and Danny made small talk. Matt explained the mathematical element of sports to him.

"So Danny do you like being a cop?" Becky asked rescuing him, knowing that when Matt started talking about math sometimes it was a little hard to stop him.

"It has its moments." Danny replied. "It can definitely be frustrating sometimes, there some cases where you know the guy did it but you can't prove it. Others where you can understand the reasons why it happened. But getting the evidence to put the worst of the bad guys away is worth the long hours."

"It beats being locked in panic room." Lindsay stated.

"Don't remind me." Danny sighed.

"Panic room?"

"Danny and Stella were working the case where the housekeeper and her boyfriend killed her millionaire recluse boss, and Danny ended up getting trapped in the panic room with the body. The boyfriend was the guy who installed the panic room and told them that it would take about 14 hours to open. So Danny had to solve the case."

"While being stuck in a room with no air con and a dead body. It's not pretty or dinner conversation." Danny suggested. "Unlike your sister eating deep fried spiders and other creepy crawlies."

"That will just teach you to bet against me." Lindsay told him.

"You bet against her?" Becky questioned.

"How was I to know that she would eat it? Everyone else turned it down and Mac was convinced she would."

"Our unofficial family motto is don't bet against a Monroe." Becky told him.

"It would have been nice to know that before." Danny replied.

"You don't know unless you ask. Like you didn't know what Clay did for a living."

"What were the odds that you had a brother who was an assistant coach for a pro-football team?"

"Actually the odds are…" Matt started.

"He doesn't need the exact odds." Becky patted Matt's hand to stop him. "You have to be careful using words like odds around Math professors. Especially ones who graduate high school at 14."

"That's impressive." Lindsay commented.

"It wasn't to the people I went to high school with."

"What do they know?" Lindsay replied.

"Says the girl who was a cheerleader, dated the star pitcher, was a member of the science club and got straight As. Not forgetting having the boy who had a crush on her since they were kids who made her crop circles hearts for her birthday."

Lindsay blushed.

"You were a cheerleader?" Danny asked.

"She was a smart Susie High School." Becky stated.

"You were a cheerleader as well." Lindsay countered. "And it never hurt that we were Clay and Adam's little sisters."

"Speaking of cheerleaders, did Lindsay ever show you the photographs of Clay's bachelor party?"

"Yes." Danny replied. "I was trying to convince her she could make a lot of money selling them on the internet."

"Sacrilege." Becky said. "Beside they're great guys, and they know how to party."

"I don't think Danny needs to hear that story." Lindsay stated. "Look here comes our food."

They continued to make small talk as they ate.

"If you'll excuse me I need to go to the ladies room." Lindsay said as they waited for their deserts.

"I'll come with you." Becky told her.

"So do you have any insight into why women have to go to the bathroom in at least pairs?" Danny asked Matt.

"No. But one of students in the psychology department is writing a thesis on it. It should be interesting reading when it's done."

CSI NY

"So?" Becky leant against the counter as Lindsay washed her hands.

"So?" Lindsay repeated.

"What do you think of Matt?"

"I like him." Lindsay replied. "I get the feeling he gets absorbed in his work and turns into the slightly absentminded professor but he seems nice."

"Nice is such a non-descriptive word."

"How about I approve? Is that better?"

"Yes." Becky replied. "If you like him that means Mom will."

"What do you think of Danny?"

"He suits you." Becky said. "He's smart, funny, articulate and he has a gun and will protect you."

"Becky, I have gun too. I'm a cop and I can look after myself."

"How about we stick to an 'I approve' too?" Becky asked.

"Deal." Lindsay replied.

TBC


	24. Chapter 24

Danny smiled as he watched Lindsay and Becky as they rode up to the 86th floor of the Empire State Building.

"Wow." Becky said when they stepped on the observation deck. Given the hour it was dark so the lights of the city could be seen.

"I second that."

Lindsay walked over to the edge to get a closer look.

"On a clear day you can see 80 miles." Danny told them. "That means you can see New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and even Massachusetts."

Lindsay looked at him.

"What? I remembered some of the stuff from my field trip." He shrugged.

"It's really beautiful." Becky said.

"That's the George Washington Bridge." Danny pointed out.

"If you think that's good you should see the Golden Gate Bridge at sunset." Becky told him.

"I've never been to the west coast." Danny admitted.

"You've never been to the west coast?" Becky repeated. "Have you ever been out of New York?"

"For a few work related conferences."

"You can take the boy out of the city…" Lindsay teased.

"What? The city is great; you have everything you need why leave?"

"Oh Linds, you need to show him Montana. You'd love big open spaces, being able to see for miles without having to go 80 odd storeys up." Becky told him. Danny looked at her. "Think of it as Central Park with fresh air."

"Matt would you tell these country girls that living in a city is great?" Danny requested.

"Don't look at me; I grew up in Broken Bow, Oklahoma." Matt replied.

"Is that as small as it sounds?" Danny asked.

"Pretty much."

"Why do I even bother?" Danny started to walk the other way, while Lindsay pointed out some of the buildings she recognised to Matt.

Becky followed him.

"Danny."

"Yeah?" He turned to look at her.

"Since Lindsay is busy I have a chance to say this, if you hurt my big sister you won't have do deal with my parents, or my brothers or the defensive line, you'll have to deal with me."

"Are all country girls this violent?" Danny asked.

"It's not violence, it's family and we have each others backs. Lindsay is probably having the same conversation with Matt."

"Trust me I'd never intentionally hurt or let anyone else hurt her."

"Good." Becky replied. "I like you; I'd hate to have to kill you."

"That's good to know." Danny said relaxing a bit.

"Everything okay over here?" Lindsay asked.

"We were just trying to figure out how big King Kong would be in relation to this place."

"It's best not to ask her." Danny told Becky. "This is a woman who stood at the base of the Statue of Liberty and said it looked bigger on TV."

"It does." Lindsay protested.

"That's to do with the aspect ratios of televisions." Matt supplied.

"Did you know that in addition to making the Empire State building the tallest in New York for a while the lighting rod was actually designed to tie passing airships to." Lindsay supplied.

"Someone might want to mention that to Macy's for when they invariably loose one of the balloons in their Thanksgiving Parade." Danny joked.

"We usually watch that on TV." Becky said.

"It's actually better than being there in person sometimes." Danny stated. "You see that really bright building over there." He pointed to a building that caught his eye.

"Yes." Becky said.

"That's the General Electric Building in Rockefeller Center."

"I suppose if you're the electric company you can afford the lighting bills." Becky commented.

They continued to walk around looking at the view.

"I recognise that one." Becky said. "The Chrysler building."

"So Montana do you like the view?" Danny whispered in her ear.

"It's gorgeous; remind me to come back with a camera." Lindsay told him.

"But it's no wheat field." He recalled their conversation a few weeks before.

"No but I'm beginning to see what you like about it."

They hung around looking at the New York skyline until the observation deck closed. Lindsay hugged her sister goodbye when they put her in a cab back to her hotel and made her promise to call her when she got back to Boston.

Lindsay and Danny headed back to Lindsay's place.

TBC


	25. Chapter 25

"So you got shot?" Danny said when he had finished locking the door.

"You wouldn't rather see my cheerleading outfit?" Lindsay asked.

"We'll get back to that later Montana."

"Fine." Lindsay dropped her purse on the counter and shrugged off her sweater. She turned over her left arm, so he could see the tiny faint mark on the inside of the top of her arm. "It's nothing; I have a worse scar from when I feel off my bike when I was a kid."

"What happened?"

"You're a cop you know how things go. A suspect didn't like the idea he was about to be arrested and started shooting. I was behind the car taking cover; a bullet ricocheted off the hood and caught my arm. It's why I switch to being a CSI. I double majored in college in criminology and forensic science. It was a relatively small department and one of them just retired so it was well timed. So are you done overreacting to something that happened almost four years ago?"

"Yes."

"Good, because you've got more scars than I do."

"I grew up in a tough neighbourhood." Danny pointed out.

"I know." Lindsay replied. "Can we go to bed? We have to be at work in less than 8 hours."

"Okay." Danny agreed.

CSI NY CSI NY

"So how did dinner go last night?" Stella asked Lindsay as they continued to work on their case.

"It was good." Lindsay replied. "And you're right about the view from the top of the Empire State Building too."

"You went there last night?" Stella questioned.

"Danny thought since Becky had never been to New York before and was only here for the night that she would like to see it too."

"An attempt to impress the sister. Did it work?"

"She liked him anyway, although I don't think he convinced her that you living in New York beat Montana. She thinks Danny would like the open space and fresh air."

"I don't think Danny's ever really been out of New York apart from the conferences that Mac sends him to." Stella said. "He's a city boy."

"I'm a country girl." Lindsay smiled.

"Did Becky and the Professor catch their train back to Boston?"

"No. The FBI sent a car to pick them up, got homeland security to rush them through security so they could catch the 7am flight back to Boston from JFK."

"The FBI that's impressive."

"Apparently they couldn't wait three hours for their train to get in."

"That's the FBI for you never very patient." Stella smiled.

"Hey Lindsay." Hawkes appeared.

"Hey." Lindsay replied.

"Marty said to tell you he's a little hurt you didn't introduce him to your sister yesterday."

"Tell Marty she has a boyfriend and even if she didn't, she's my baby sister and there no way that was going to happen."

"Maybe you should tell him that yourself." Hawkes suggested.

"Isn't she only two years younger than you?" Stella asked.

"Yes. But Clay and Adam were 8 and 6 when I was born so I was the baby; Becky meant I didn't get treated like the baby anymore." Lindsay explained. "And I had someone to play with who didn't use me as target practice for throwing a football."

"Rumour has it you used to be a cheerleader." Hawkes crossed his arms.

"Danny has a big mouth. Did he mention that I got shot four years ago too?"

"You got shot?" Stella asked.

"It was nothing, a graze; a bullet ricocheted off a car hood and caught my arm. I barely even have a scar."

"That's good." Hawkes said.

"The scar from when I fell off my bike was worse, but my tattoo covers most of that."

"You have a tattoo?" Hawkes questioned his interested piqued.

"Why can't I keep my big mouth shut?" Lindsay muttered. "I have a heart on my hip; a group of us got them the day after we graduated high school."

"I thought you were more the flower type." Hawkes stated. "What's the state flower of Montana away?"

"Bitterroot." Lindsay replied.

"That's a flower?"

"_Yes, Lewisia rediviva. _It's a purplish-pink flower. It's really pretty. The Native Americans used to dig it up and trade it the root which could be used for food. But you can't eat it unless it's cooked, it's too bitter hence the name. They have this one story that the sun heard a mother crying because she didn't have any food for her children, so the sun turned her tears into bitterroot so they would always have food."

"That's nice." Stella said.

"I thought so the first time I heard it." Lindsay agreed.

TBC


	26. Chapter 26

A few weeks later it was Lindsay's birthday. Mac had given her the day off, Danny although he had tried to swap shifts only managed to get stuck on a 2 to 10 shift.

"Danny is this blindfold really necessary?" Lindsay asked as they rode in a cab to an unknown location.

"It wouldn't be a surprise otherwise." Danny told her.

"I hate surprises."

"It's your birthday." Danny stated.

"And I loved the necklace you got me." Lindsay replied.

"I have to work tonight so that screws up any plans for what to do, so just let me do this." He requested.

"Okay." Lindsay conceded.

Danny paid the cab driver and took Lindsay's hand and led her to their destination.

"Stay there for just one second."

"At least you're not leaving me in the middle of the street." Lindsay said grateful for the lack of traffic noises around her.

Lindsay could hear noises of Danny shuffling around her for a few minutes, before she could tell from his aftershave that he was stood right in front of her.

"Close your eyes Montana." Danny instructed.

"Okay they are closed."

Danny removed the blindfold.

"Open them." Lindsay opened her eyes. Danny was stood in front of her holding a cupcake with a birthday candle little on top. "Happy Birthday."

"Thank you."

"You should blow it out before we get in trouble for having an open flame in Central Park."

Lindsay made a quick wish and blew out the candle. Danny stepped back so she could see that he had laid out a blanket and arrange a picnic.

"I can't take you out to dinner, but I can arrange a surprise birthday picnic lunch in Central Park. Happy birthday Montana."

"It's perfect." Lindsay threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. Danny wrapped his arms around her careful to the hold the cupcake away from her body so she didn't get covered in frosting. "When did you have time to do all of this?"

"Sometimes it's not what you know, but who you know." Danny replied as they sat down.

They chatted as they ate recalling birthday memories.

"This is great." Lindsay said.

"I thought you'd like it."

"Do you picnic often?"

"Do I look like the picnic type?" Danny questioned.

"Maybe not. When I was a kid we used to have carpet picnics on rainy days. My Mom would spread out this quilt she had made from our baby clothes and we'd have sandwiches and chips and cake and soda."

"Sounds like fun."

"Until the inevitable food fight. But it was fun."

Danny packed the rubbish into paper bag to put it the trash and then put all the other items except the blanket back in his rucksack.

Lindsay sat on blanket and ran her finger the frosting tasted.

"Umm."

"Going to share your cake Montana?" Danny asked.

"No." Lindsay replied.

"No?" Danny questioned.

"No." Lindsay repeated adamantly.

"Anyway I can convince you to share?"

Lindsay thought for moment and then dipped her finger frosting and put it on his nose.

"No."

"I'll get you for that." Danny ran after as she got to her feet to protect her cupcake.

Danny caught up with her and looped an arm around her waist hauling her off her feet as she giggled. Danny spun her around.

Lindsay kissed the frosting off of his nose and then kissed him.

"You taste almost as good in the frosting." Lindsay told him.

"Is that so?" He kissed her. "Are you going to share?"

Lindsay pulled out of his arms and started to walk backwards.

"No. You should never ask a lady to share her cupcake, especially when it's her birthday."

"Is that right?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Montana, watch where you're going."

"What?" Lindsay didn't get to say anymore as she tumbled backwards over Danny's rucksack onto her back still clutching the cup cake. "OW!"

TBC


	27. Chapter 27

A/N: A second post to celebrate that England won their first game of the World Cup. (Even if it was an own goal by the otherside)

* * *

"Are you okay Montana?" Danny was quickly at her side.

"Apart from wounded pride, my foot hurts."

"Which one?" Danny asked.

"Left."

Danny carefully slipped off her sandal.

"Does this hurt?" He gently prodded it.

"Yes. Where did you learn your bedside manner Dr Messer?"

"Hawkes." Danny replied.

"Ow."

"Okay, I'm taking you to the emergency room."

"Danny, I just need to go home and put some ice on it and I'll be fine."

"You need to see a doctor."

"Ice will do just fine." Lindsay insisted.

"Okay, let me put the blanket away and I'll take you home and get you some ice."

"Thank you." Lindsay shuffled off the blanket so he could fold it up and stuff it back in his rucksack. She put her sandal back on.

Danny helped her to her feet. Lindsay tried to walk with Danny's supposed.

"Ow, ow, ow."

"You really need to go to the emergency room."

"I'm not going to spend the rest of my birthday waiting around the emergency room only for the doctor to tell me to put ice on and take ibuprofen for the pain and swelling."

Lindsay pulled a face as it hurt to walk.

"This isn't working." Danny scooped her up in arms. "You should see a doctor."

"No hospitals." Lindsay insisted.

"You're stubborn as a mule."

"And proud of it."

Danny managed to hail a cab, rather than giving them Lindsay's address he gave the cab driver the labs address.

"Why are we going to work?" Lindsay inquired.

"Because I'm as stubborn as you are."

CSI NY CSI NY

When they got to the lab, Danny picked up her again.

"This is embarrassing." Lindsay stated.

"Them's the breaks."

Danny carried her through the lab until he located the person he was looking for. He kicked the bottom of the door since his hands were full to get the person's attention.

Hawkes turned and smirked at Danny carrying Lindsay.

"Hey." He opened the door. "I'm not going to even ask. Happy birthday Lindsay."

"Thank you." Lindsay replied.

"She hurt her foot, and is too stubborn to let me take to the hospital. You went to med school do you think you could take a look?" Danny requested.

"Sure. I need five minutes to finish this up, elevate her foot and find her some ice and I'll right there."

"Thank you." Danny replied.

"Let's take a look." Hawkes walked into the room snapping on some gloves a few minutes later.

Danny removed the icepack he'd been holding on her foot.

"That's going to be a nice bruise." Hawkes commented. "This may hurt." He prodded her foot and asked Lindsay a few questions.

"What's the verdict?"

"You need an x-ray." Hawkes stated.

"Spending the rest of the day at the hospital was exactly how I wanted to spend the rest of my birthday." Lindsay sighed.

"Bring the birthday girl." Hawkes told Danny.

Danny picked Lindsay up again, leaving his rucksack where it was.

"I'm not coming to work tomorrow." Lindsay pressed her face against Danny's shoulder.

"You need to keep off that foot for a few days anyway." Hawkes told her.

They took the elevator down.

Hawkes held open the doors as they walked into the morgue.

"Hey Sid, I need a favour?"

"Is this a case of buy two CSI's get another one for free because I'm not buying?" Sid Hammerback asked.

"Lindsay's hurt her foot, she needs an x-ray but she's refusing to spend the day at her hospital. I was wondering if you could help us out."

"I thought you were supposed to give people gifts on their birthday, not give them as gifts." Marty joked.

"She needs an x-ray of her foot." Sid told him. "Can you take care of it?"

"Sure. Right this way. You'll just have to remember to stay still, which is something we don't have to tell most of our subjects."

TBC


	28. Chapter 28

Hawkes, Sid and Marty stood around the looking at Lindsay's x-ray making himming and haing noises.

"Well since I'm not dying, is someone going to tell me what that says or am I leaving?" Lindsay inquired. She was sat on one of the morgue beds which she found slightly creepy. Death didn't bother her as she dealt with it on an almost daily basis but being on that bed did.

"You young lady had a hairline fractures of two of your metatarsals bones." Sid brought the x-ray over and held it up to the light for Lindsay to see. "Here and here." He pointed them out.

"That means you've won a trip to the hospital for a cast and crutches." Marty added.

"Great." Lindsay sighed.

"Cheer up Montana." Danny told her. "It could have been worse."

Lindsay looked at him.

"Sid do you have any headed note paper around here?" Hawkes asked.

"In my office."

"I think three doctors' opinions and a set of x-rays should get you through the system a little quicker." Hawkes told Lindsay.

"How long will I have to have a cast?" Lindsay inquired.

"A month at least." Marty told her.

CSI NY CSI NY

Danny carried Lindsay to the elevator and pressed the down button. When the doors opened Flack was inside.

"I'm not going to ask." He said. "Happy Birthday Lindsay."

"Thank you."

"Going down?" Flack asked.

"Yes." Lindsay replied.

"Are you busy Flack?" Danny inquired once the doors closed.

"No, just heading back to catch up on some paperwork. Why?"

"Can you take her to the hospital?" Danny requested. "My shift starts in 15 minutes."

"Hospital?" Flack questioned.

"She broke her foot."

"She has a name and is right here." Lindsay reminded him.

"Sorry Montana."

"I can take her to the hospital." Flack replied.

"She has x-rays already and three diagnostic opinions in the file on her lap."

"You got x-rays at the morgue?" Flack questioned when it hit him where they had just come from.

"She's refused to go to the hospital or a doctor, so I brought her here to see Hawkes." Danny explained. "Which ended up with Sid and Marty getting involved."

Danny carried her and put her in Flack's car and made her promise to call him as soon as she got out of the hospital.

CSI NY CSI NY

Flack had grabbed a wheelchair to bring Lindsay into the hospital. He wheeled her up to the triage nurses desk.

"Name." The woman snapped.

"Lindsay Monroe." Lindsay replied.

"What's your complaint?"

"She has a broken foot." Flack told her. "She just needs a cast and crutches."

"Are you a doctor son?" The nurse asked.

"No. Detective Don Flack NYPD."

"Leave the diagnosis to the professionals."

"How about x-rays and three doctors from the ME's office?" Flack held up the files and the notes that Hawkes, Sid and Marty had written.

"I work in the same building as them and they gave me an x-ray, they said I needed a cast and crutches." Lindsay explained.

"I'll need to take those and fill out this." She handed her a clipboard with the paperwork on it. Lindsay brokered the exchange. "Take a seat."

"Are you always like this in hospitals?" Lindsay asked Flack.

"I hate hospitals."

"And you're a homicide detective?" Lindsay questioned.

"Homicide implies most of them are dead when I get there. Dead people don't bother me that much especially since I don't have to touch them."

"Right." Lindsay smiled.

…

"Dr Huntsburg." The nurse walked over to him.

"Yes?"

"We have a woman who was sent over by the Medical Examiners office."

"The Medical Examiner is sending us patients? It's usually the other way around."

"This one is definitely alive and with a cop. They took x-rays and sent over letters explaining the situations. She's a cop too. She just needs a cast which they can't." She handed him the x-ray.

He confirmed the diagnosis.

"Confirm her identity and then bring her back. We should be able to get her out of here quickly."

TBC


	29. Chapter 29

"Messer." Danny answered his cell phone. "What did they say?... Ouch… Did you..?... I'll see if I can get Stella to bring you over some dinner…. I'll tell Mac… I'll see you later." He hung up.

"Tell Mac what?" Mac inquired.

"Lindsay's going to need to rest of the week off."

"Why?"

"She has a hairline fracture of two of the metatarsals in her left foot." Danny replied.

"How did she manage that?"

"I was trying to convince her to let me have some of the cupcake I'd bought her as birthday cake. She was walking backwards telling me you shouldn't ask a lady to share cupcake especially on her birthday and I tried to stop her but she fell over the bag I'd brought the picnic in."

"You took her on a picnic?" Stella asked from the doorway.

"I couldn't take her to dinner since I have to work." Danny pointed out.

"I think it's sweet."

"He was just telling me how Lindsay broke her foot." Mac explained.

"Lindsay broke her foot?" Stella questioned.

"When she fell over the bag." Danny confirmed.

"You did take her to the hospital right?" Stella asked.

"She refused to go. She just thought she bruised it and wanted to go home and put some ice on it. But since she couldn't walk, I kidnapped her and brought her here."

"Here?" Stella was intrigued.

"Hawkes went to med school." Danny shrugged. "You'll probably find the surveillance camera footage of me carrying her around."

"Hawkes is better than no doctor."

"He insisted she have an x-ray, so we went to the morgue and Sid and Marty took an x-ray."

"The morgue isn't for personal use." Mac pointed out.

"I know Mac." Danny replied. "Anyways since my shift was about to start I had Flack take her to the hospital with the x-rays and three doctors' notes. She has an air cast until the swelling goes down and she'll get a permanent one tomorrow, crutches and painkillers. Flack took her home and set her up on the couch."

"No the best way to spend your birthday." Stella stated.

"If I give you some cash and one of the spare keys to her apartment can you take her dinner?"

"One of the spare keys?" Mac questioned.

"Don't ask." Danny suggested.

"Sure." Stella agreed.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Lindsay?" Stella called when she let herself in.

"In here." Lindsay responded from where she was sat on the couch, her foot up on a cushion on the coffee table. She had packets of chips and bottles of water around her.

"Hey happy birthday."

"Thanks." Lindsay replied. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay, feeling a bit stupid but I'm fine."

"Good. Dinner." She held up one bag. "And this is from everyone at the lab." She handed Lindsay a big pink box.

"Thanks." Lindsay took the box and pulled off the ribbon and the lid then paused. "Sorry about the mess it was Flack's way of making sure I didn't have to get up unnecessarily." Lindsay moved some of the junk out of Stella's way. "Sit down."

"Thank you." Stella said down while Lindsay removed the lid of the box. Inside were two framed photographs.

"Wow." Lindsay smiled.

"Frankie has a friend of a friend who is a photographer from Montana."

"They're beautiful. Thank you." Lindsay gave her a hug.

"Everyone chipped in. There is a card in the bottom as well. We were going to get you a cake for tomorrow but since you won't be in."

"It's okay." Lindsay assured her. "Danny bought me a cupcake with a candle in it, which I broke my foot trying to stop him stealing."

"You he feels kind of guilty about it."

"I was my own stupid fault for walking backwards. I would have just come home and put ice on it if Danny hadn't pulled his little stunt."

"I have pictures of him carrying you through the halls." Stella admitted.

"That's what I was afraid of."

"And he took you on picnic."

"That was sweet. He gave me this." Lindsay showed Stella the necklace Danny had given her. It was a gold chain with a gold pendant which was in shape of the centre of the Montana state flag, with the word Montana engraved on the gold that encircled it.

"It's beautiful."

"And a book of reasons why people like New York City. He said it was the best of both worlds. Then he blindfolded me and took me to Central Park for a surprise picnic."

Lindsay and Stella continued to chat as they ate the food that Stella had brought.

"When Danny gave me the spare key he said it was one of the spare keys." Stella stated.

"He has two, one he keeps at the lab. I managed to lock myself out a few weeks ago and Danny had left his keys on the table, so we had to pick the lock. So I got a couple extra cut that we keep at the lab."

TBC


	30. Chapter 30

Danny let himself into Lindsay's apartment just after 11. He'd had to stick around the lab for some test results only to be told the machine had broken down and they were waiting for someone to come and fix it.

He'd finally given up and left, knowing he couldn't do anymore until morning.

He was surprised to find Mac, Hawkes, Flack and Stella all sat around Lindsay's living room all laughing.

"I'm guessing my invitation got lost in the mail." He joked.

"Hey Danny." Lindsay smiled. "There is pizza and cake if you're hungry."

"Thanks."

"How are things at the lab?" Mac inquired.

"DNA's backlogged, the MassSpec is down and they are waiting on a repair person, one of the bulbs in strip lights and blacked the lab out for a few seconds until the generators kicked in and someone went and found the breaker box. And someone called in specifically to the lab to report that some one had come into their store opened all the packets of candy and stole all the strawberry ones."

"A candy bandit we'll get right on it." Flack stated.

"Since it was a few thousand dollars worth of candy that got ruined someone went down to collect the evidence and print it. So we now half a couple hundred pounds of candy sitting around the lab."

"Shame we can't eat evidence." Lindsay stated.

Mac looked at her.

"I was just saying." She shrugged.

"We should get going it's late and we have work in the morning." Stella stated. "Call me if you need anything." She gave Lindsay a hug.

"Thanks Stella."

"I'll give you a ride home." Mac told her before adding to Lindsay. "And I don't expect to see you in the lab before Monday."

"Yes boss." Lindsay joked.

"I'll come by and pick you up at about ten tomorrow." Flack told her. Since he had the following day off he'd offered to take her back to the hospital to get her cast.

"Stella do you have that spare key?" Lindsay inquired.

Stella pulled it out of her pocket and handed it to Lindsay.

"Sorry, I thought I'd given it back to you."

"It's okay. Here." Lindsay handed the key to Flack. "It will save me getting up to let you in."

"Okay." Flack replied.

"Happy birthday again and I'll drop by in a couple days to see you." Hawkes told her.

"Thank you. It's been fun."

Danny saw them all out and then locked up for the night.

"That was a surprise." Danny said as he started to pick up the trash.

"Stella came over to bring me dinner like you asked, then Flack and Hawkes showed up with pizza to check up on me. Since they decided to stay, Stella called Mac as she knew he wouldn't have plans and he bought the cake over." Lindsay explained.

"Sorry you had a strange day."

"Apart from the minor pain and embarrassment, it's actually been a pretty good day." Lindsay replied. "The impromptu party was great, it would have been better if you were here."

"You say the nicest things Montana." Danny kissed her. "You should go to bed, I'll clean up here."

"Okay. Want to pass me my crutches?" Lindsay asked.

Danny scooped her up in his arms.

"This is starting to be a habit."

"Quit complaining." Danny carried her to the bed. He grabbed her something to change into. "I'll bring your crutches in in a minute."

"Okay." Lindsay shuffled back on the bed.

Danny started to leave.

"Hey Danny?"

"Yes?" He stopped in the doorway."

"Thank you for today." She told him. "All of it."

"You mean chasing you so you broke your foot?"

"That was my fault for not looking where I was going." Lindsay stated. "But I loved the picnic and I meant thank you for taking me to the lab to get Hawkes to look at my foot and for caring enough to ignore the fact that I was being stubborn."

"No problem." Danny replied stuffing his hands in his pocket.

"You really should try the cake it's great."

"Okay."

Lindsay changed into her pyjamas and then hopped to the bathroom to brush her teeth and take off her makeup. She'd just hopped back to the bed when Danny came in have finished.

"You should have yelled for your crutches."

"Hopping is easier." Lindsay assured him.

"I brought your pillow for your foot."

"Thanks."

TBC


	31. Chapter 31

Lindsay was the first to wake up the next morning.

Danny was lying face down next to her, his arm slung across her waist. Lindsay managed to extricate herself.

Using her crutches she went to the kitchen and got a glass of water. She also grabbed a trash bag and some tape.

Lindsay went back to the bedroom.

"Hey Danny time to wake up."

"It's too early." Danny stuffed his head under the pillow.

"You have to be at work in an hour."

"The alarm didn't go off." He muttered from under the pillow.

"I forgot to set it and I didn't really have to get up right now." Lindsay pointed.

"Okay. I'm up."

"Good. I need you to take this around my foot." She dropped the trash bag and tape on the bed.

"What?" Danny yawned.

"I want to take a shower and I can't get my cast wet. I need to wash my hair."

"I can help you with that."

"What?"

"Washing your hair."

"Danny I have to stand on one foot as it is." Lindsay stated.

"Exactly. You'll need a hand to balance and I have to get to work so we can save water and time and…"

"You can get your hands on me." Lindsay finished for him.

"That could be a mutually beneficial agreement." Danny pointed.

"Okay, but help me with the trash bag first."

Danny crawled over and kissed her.

"Morning."

"Good morning to you too." Lindsay smiled.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Door to door service." Flack joked as held open Lindsay's front door for her.

"Thank you for taking me to the hospital."

"It's easier than trying to hail a cab with those things, trust me I've tried it."

"Do you want a drink or something?" Lindsay offered.

"Why don't I get it and you sit down?" Flack suggested.

"Thanks." Lindsay went and sat on the couch.

Flack brought her a drink and sat down to drink his.

"So what do you have planned for the rest of your day off?" Lindsay inquired.

"This is my first day off in two weeks, and taking you to the hospital was pretty much the extent of my plans." Flack admitted.

"If you don't have anywhere to be do you want to stick around and keep me company?" Lindsay offered.

"I ain't got nothing better to do."

"And you can hang my pictures for me."

"Ah that's why you want me to stick around." Flack realised.

"Actually I was going to say I'd buy you lunch at this great place about a block from here. I can get Danny to do it."

"No I can wield a hammer with the best of them."

"It's in the red tool box in the closet."

"You have a tool box?" Flack questioned.

"I'm a CSI; I can take a patrol car to pieces and put it back together. I actually did that once."

"You took a patrol car to pieces?"

"Back in Bozeman, it was a charity thing to raise money for the benevolent fund. The cops challenged the local mechanics to see who could take a patrol car to pieces and then put it back together in the quickest time. We won." Lindsay explained.

"Why would you do that?" Flack asked.

"They had a bake off against the fire department and someone thought a bigger challenge was necessary."

"So taking apart patrol cars seemed like a good idea. I see the logic."

"It wasn't my idea." Lindsay shrugged. "Although I think I remember someone suggesting foam wrestling."

"Now that's an idea I can get behind."

"There were only four women in the department." Lindsay stated. "And I think Penny was pregnant at the time. The idea got dropped when we refused to take part in it."

TBC


	32. Chapter 32

Danny heard laughter when let himself into Lindsay's apartment. He found Flack and Lindsay sat on the couch watching 'I Love Lucy' reruns; both had their feet up and a large bowl of popcorn between them.

"Having fun?" Danny asked.

"I forgot how much I liked this show." Flack stated.

"You can't beat 'I Love Lucy'." Lindsay agreed stuffing popcorn into her mouth. "How are things at work?"

"Well they fixed the Mass Spec and that was pretty much the highlight of the day." Danny replied. "What have you been up to?"

"I got my new cast." Lindsay raised her foot so Danny could see the black fibreglass cast on her foot.

"Black? Now I have to find a metallic pen to write on it."

"You're not writing on it. I have to go to court in a couple weeks and I'm not walking in there with a cast that is written all over. Why do you think I got black?"

"Don't look at me." Flack said. "I tried to convince her to get a different colour."

"Black is just fine." Lindsay insisted. "And it won't show the dirt so much."

"Practical." Danny joked. "What else have you been up to?"

"Since I didn't have anything else to do we hung out." Flack replied.

"He hung my pictures for me." Lindsay pointed to the wall where the photographs she had been given for her birthday were now hung. "So I took him to lunch. Then we played poker."

"Which was a bad idea since she's a card shark." Flack stated.

"It's not my fault you're the only cop in New York who doesn't know how to bluff convincingly." Lindsay protested.

"I thought you'd both know that gambling in New York is illegal."

"It's good we were only playing with M & M's." Lindsay winked at him. "Now we're watching 'I Love Lucy' reruns."

"Don't forget Judge Judy." Flack pointed.

"Who my mother loves." Lindsay stated.

"I know a few people who went through her court room when she was a family court judge here. Come to that I know a few people she prosecuted." Danny pointed out.

"The six degrees of Judge Judy." Flack joked. "I should head home. Today's been interesting Lindsay."

"Thanks for keeping me company."

"I'll see tomorrow Danny." Flack told him.

"Yeah."

Flack saw himself out.

"Want to watch 'I Love Lucy' with me?" Lindsay inquired.

"Sure." Danny sat down in the seat Flack had vacated. He grabbed a handful of popcorn and kicked his feet up on the coffee table.

Lindsay stole glances at him as they watched.

"What?" Danny finally asked.

"Nothing."

"Which means it's something."

"You know you spend more time here than you do at your place." Lindsay stated.

"Is that a hint you want me to leave?" Danny inquired.

"No. Just an observation."

"Is it a problem?"

"No." Lindsay replied. "I like having you here."

"I like being here." Danny agreed. "You have better water pressure than I do."

"So you're using me for my water pressure." Lindsay eyed.

"It doesn't hurt that you're cute, and willing to try most things."

She hit him with a cushion.

That turned into a pillow and popcorn fight.

They both laughed as they caught their breath.

"You're cleaning this up." Danny told her.

"Hey I'm injured." Lindsay protested.

"You started the fight you clean up the mess."

"That's crazy logic and why I wish I had a dog."

"Why?"

"Because it would eat the popcorn so I didn't have to get the vacuum out and I'm not exactly sure how you manage that on one foot and…"

"Fine I'll vacuum." Danny gave in. "By the way what's for dinner?"

"Anything but Italian. I had that for lunch."

"Barbecue?" Danny suggested.

"Sounds good." Lindsay agreed.

TBC


	33. Chapter 33

A/N: A second post to celebrate Englands 2-0 win over Trindad and Tobago in the World Cup.

"I'm going to back to my apartment after I'm done at work." Danny told Lindsay as he buttoned his shirt Saturday morning.

"Oh okay." Lindsay could help the sound of disappointment in her voice.

"I haven't been home in almost a week." Danny continued. "I have to grab my mail, some clean clothes and such. So I probably won't be back until late."

"Okay." Lindsay sounded happier.

"That's if you don't mind?"

"You can stay at your apartment if you want." Lindsay shrugged in an attempt to be nonchalant.

"I'll be back later." Danny gave her a quick kiss.

"Have a nice day at the office dear." Lindsay teased.

"Cute Montana, real cute."

"I try."

CSI NY CSI NY

Around one o'clock Lindsay's phone rang fortunately she'd had it on the couch next to her.

"Hello?" Lindsay answered.

"_Is Danny there please?"_ An older female voice with an accent similar to Danny's inquired.

"I'm afraid not." Lindsay said wondering who exactly Danny had given her phone number to. "If you want to leave your name I'll give him a message when I see him."

"_I'm sorry. I'm Caroline Messer, Danny's mother." _

"Mrs Messer, I'm Lindsay Monroe a friend of Danny's."

"_I presume you're more than just a friend if Danny gave me your number if I couldn't reach him at home."_ Caroline stated.

"Danny's going to be at work for the rest of the day." Lindsay told her. "You can try his cell phone if it's important."

"_It's not. I'm just in Manhattan for the day and I thought if he wasn't busy we could have lunch. I'm sorry to have bothered you."_

"It's not a problem." Lindsay paused. "If you don't want to eat alone, I can have lunch with you. I broke my foot a few days ago and I've been mostly stuck in my apartment. It would be nice to get out."

"_That would be nice._" Caroline told her.

"Where exactly are you?" Lindsay inquired. Caroline told her. Lindsay suggested a nearby restaurant she had been to before. "It will take me about half an hour to get there, I'm moving slower these days."

"_That will be fine. I'll meet you there."_

Lindsay said goodbye and hung up.

"Where the hell did that come from?" She muttered to herself. Having lunch with her boyfriend's mother was something that came out of left of the field even though it had been her suggestion. She had to get up and change. She was wearing sweat pants and one of Danny's t-shirts since she wasn't planning on going anywhere.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Table for one?" The hostess asked Lindsay when she arrived at the restaurant.

"Actually I'm meeting someone. A Caroline Messer."

"Mrs Messer has already been seated; let me show you to the table."

Lindsay was escorted over to the table.

"Mrs Messer?" Lindsay said, even if she hadn't seen a picture of Danny's mother before she would have recognised her, as Danny looked so much like her.

"Lindsay, please sit down."

"Thank you." Lindsay told the hostess as she slid into her seat. "Sorry I took longer than expected; my cab driver didn't speak very good English."

"That happens."

"It's nice to meet you Mrs Messer." Lindsay told her.

"Please call me Carrie. Mrs Messer makes me feel old."

"My mother hates being called Mrs Monroe too. She keeps on insisting that's my grandmother."

"And how long have you been dating my son?" Caroline inquired.

"Almost two months." Lindsay said after making a quick mental calculation. "But I've known him longer as we work together."

"You're a police officer too?"

"Yes ma'am." Lindsay replied. "I'm originally from Bozeman, Montana but I moved here almost a year ago."

"And how do you like our little city?" Caroline asked.

"It grows on you." Lindsay answered. "It will never beat back home, but I like it."

TBC

A/N: Just ignore everything that happened after Stealing Home. Frankie and Aiden are still alive and Flack is just fine.


	34. Chapter 34

Lindsay was sat on the couch watching a movie when Danny came back from work.

"Hey." He said dropping a bag with clothes in it on the floor.

"Hey. Come here."

Lindsay gave him a peck on the cheek, a quick hug then gently hit him upside the head.

"Ow." Danny rubbed the back of his head. "That was the greeting I was hoping for."

"That was from your mother." She grabbed his lapels and drew him down for a long kiss that made his brain blank out for a few seconds.

"Did you just say my mother?" Danny asked when his brain started to process information again.

"She told me to give you a kiss and hug and slap you upside the head for not calling her enough."

"How and why did you speak to my mother?" Danny was seriously confused.

"She called here looking for you; apparently you gave her my phone number."

"Only in case of dire emergencies if she couldn't reach me on my cell or through work. And that was pretty much if someone was dying."

"You should have probably explained that to her. But she is a really nice woman, she's very proud of you."

"Just how long did you talk to my mother for?" Danny asked still stunned.

"A couple hours, we had lunch."

"You had lunch with my mother?" Danny questioned.

"That's why she called. She was in Manhattan for the day and wanted to know if you wanted to have lunch, since you were at work I offered to have lunch with her."

"You offered?"

"It came out of my mouth before I thought about it. I guess I didn't want her to eat alone."

"So you went to lunch with my mother and spent the whole time talking about me?"

"No. Sorry to dent your ego. She told me a couple stories about you, showed me some really cute pictures of you and Louie as kids, and I could tell how proud she is of you. But we talked about a lot of things; I told her about Montana, she told me some good places to shop, she told me about the night classes she's taking."

"My mother is taking a night class?" Danny questioned.

"She's finishing up her GED." Lindsay replied. "She thought it was time she finally finished as she was only a few credits short when she dropped out of high school."

"How did I not know that?"

"You haven't called her in a month other than leaving a message on your parents answer machine?" Lindsay suggested.

"You really had lunch with my mother?" Danny questioned.

"Yes. What's the major problem?"

"My parents haven't met any of my girlfriends since I was a teenager and they only met them because we lived in the same neighbourhood."

"I didn't tell her anything, I know how much my parents worry and I know it's best to skip major details about what we do."

"I grew up in a neighbourhood where someone got shot dead at least every other week. My parents could probably hand most of it." Danny sighed. "I'm going to take a shower."

"Okay." Lindsay replied.

CSI NY CSI NY

Flack watched Danny move around the crime scene the next morning, there was definitely something bothering him.

"Hey Hawkes, what's up with Danny?"

"Lindsay bonded with his mother."

"What?" Flack questioned.

"His mother was in Manhattan yesterday and somehow she called Lindsay, I don't know how she got the number, and they had lunch. I don't think Danny's sure how to react."

"Isn't it a good thing when your mother likes your girlfriend?" Flack asked.

"You would think." Hawkes stated.

"Should we say something?"

"Let him figure it out."

CSI NY CSI NY

"What's wrong with Danny?" Stella asked Flack when she saw him in the hallways of the crime lab. Danny had just muttered something as he walked past her.

"Lindsay had lunch with his mother yesterday."

"And?" Stella prompted.

"That's it."

"He's in a mood because Lindsay had lunch with his mother."

"I don't think it planned or Danny knew about it until after the fact." Flack explained.

TBC


	35. Chapter 35

Lindsay got up to answer the door later that evening.

"Hi." Stella said. "I'm not interrupting anything am I?"

"No. Please come in." Lindsay hoped back to so Stella could come in.

"Why don't I shut the door?" She suggested.

"Do you want a drink or something?" Lindsay offered.

"I'm fine." Stella replied as they headed for the couch. "How are you?"

"Would think I'm crazy if I said I was really missing being at work?" Lindsay asked.

"Probably not." Stella sighed. "A couple years ago I managed to convince Mac to take a week of his vacation time and do something away from the lab, how long do you think he lasted?"

"Knowing Mac maybe a day."

"Fifteen and a half hours and he was back at his desk doing paperwork."

"Sounds about right." Lindsay smiled.

"So Danny's been in an odd mood all day."

"Do you know why?" Lindsay asked.

"Something to do with you having lunch with his mother."

"It wasn't like I planned it or called her up and invited her. She called me."

"She called you and invited you to lunch?" Stella questioned.

"No. Danny had given her my phone if he couldn't be reached anywhere else in the event of an emergency, she called her looking for him because she was in town and wanted to know if he wanted to have lunch with her. I had to tell her he was at work and I offered to have lunch with her. I guess it was because I needed to get out and I didn't want her to have to eat alone."

"How did it go?"

"Lunch was great. Carrie's great too, Danny's a lot like her."

"Did she tell you any sweet Danny stories?"

"A few and showed me a couple of picture of him a kid. That took up about half an hour; we spent the rest of the time talking about other things. She was telling me about the classes she's taking so she can finally finish her GED, which Danny didn't know about. It was nice."

"That's great." Stella said. "But I'm guessing that she's finishing her GED isn't the problem."

"No. I told him about it and he sort of flipped out. Apparently he doesn't introduce his girlfriends to his parents, the last one they met was when he was a kid and that was because they lived in the same neighbourhood. In the end he said he had to take a shower, he said about five words to me after that and was gone by the time I woke up. So I have no idea what's going on."

"He's brooding and trying to figure out why he's supposed to be mad at you." Stella said. "And technically he didn't introduce you both, you introduced yourselves."

"I don't think that would make much of a difference to Danny."

"I say we don't sit around here waiting for Danny to figure out it isn't that big a deal and go out since I'm not on call tonight."

"Out where?" Lindsay inquired.

"Since crutches and alcohol don't work, how about we go and see a movie?" Stella suggested. "We can over indulge in popcorn and candy."

"I need to change."

"Have you got a paper so I can check what's on?" Stella asked

"It's over there." Lindsay replied.

Stella checked the paper and found a decent chick flick was on in forty minutes which would give them time to get there and buy refreshments.

CSI NY CSI NY

In the end they saw two movies; the first was a little too sappy so they saw a big blockbuster movie too.

"If I see anymore popcorn I think I might throw up." Stella groaned as they left.

"You know you just jinxed it." Lindsay said. "You're going to end up with a case involving popcorn tomorrow."

"Why didn't I just pick a nice office job?" Stella asked. "Nine to five no serious hassles."

"Because they wouldn't let you carry a gun and arrest the bad guys."

"True." Stella sighed.

"Do you want to grab some coffee or something before we head home?" Lindsay suggested not quite ready to go home and find out if her apartment was empty or not.

"Make it hot chocolate and you have a deal."

"Hot chocolate it is." Lindsay agreed.

"You know this is nice." Stella said. "Considering the majority of people we work with are men."

"Does it beat the dog show Mac took you to?" Lindsay asked.

"How do you know about that?"

"Danny likes tell me about odd cases you've all worked. I think a woman falling on a knitting needle at a dog show after having a spiked water bottle counts as odd."

TBC


	36. Chapter 36

When Lindsay let herself into her apartment, she knew from the fact the lights were on that Danny was there.

"Hey." Danny said.

"Hey. Been here long?"

"A couple hours." Danny admitted.

"Right."

"Go anywhere nice?" He inquired.

"Stella and I went and saw a couple movies and then had hot chocolate." She paused. "Look Danny enough of the small talk. If you're still in a mood because I had lunch with your mother, a mood which according to Stella has been driving people crazy all day, you may as well just go home."

"I'm sorry." Danny said.

"What?"

"I'm sorry." He repeated.

"Okay I need to sit down." Danny moved over so she could sit down. "Do you want to start again?"

"You were right I was being a jerk."

"I didn't say you were a jerk." Lindsay pointed out.

"But you were thinking it."

"It's not 1984."

"What?" It was Danny's turn to be confused.

"1984, George Orwell, the thought police." Lindsay explained.

"Right." Danny said making the connection. "By the way I owe you some money."

"For what?"

"I called my mother."

"What prompted that?" Lindsay asked.

"When I got here and you weren't here I got thinking."

"Hopefully you didn't hurt yourself." Lindsay joked. Danny looked at her. "Sorry bad timing. What were you thinking about?"

"You know my mother loves you?" Danny asked. "She says when I invariably screw this up she knows a couple guys who don't have criminal records she'd like to set you up with. She also wants to send you a lasagne."

"Tell her I'll take the lasagne and we'll see on the other thing."

"That was reassuring."

"Danny, you're human you're allowed to screw up every once in a while. As long as you don't start smacking me around or cheating we can probably figure this out, if we want it to work, if you talk to me. I have no idea what's going on in your head unless you tell me. I don't know why the fact that I had lunch with your mother is a big deal unless you tell me. I know men like to do the whole brooding thing, but it's easier if you just talk about it."

"Okay."

"Okay?"

"Okay." Danny confirmed.

"So do you want to tell me what you were thinking and why you reacted the way you did?" Lindsay asked.

"I was a jerk."

"I think we covered that part, but it doesn't tell me why."

"Does it matter?" Danny asked.

"Yes." Lindsay stated.

"Are you hungry?" Danny inquired.

"I ate lots of popcorn and Reese's Pieces. I'm fine." Lindsay assured him. "Did Carrie tell you about her class?"

"She did." Danny was glad she gave him an out. "I'm proud of her."

"Family should be supportive of each other. I know you didn't have the more idealised childhood I had growing up in the city rather than the country, but some things shouldn't matter where you grew up."

"So I'm learning."

"Are you ready to tell me why it was such a big deal?" Lindsay asked.

"Getting mad about you having lunch with my mother wasn't about that but more about something else I realised and I wasn't sure how to deal with it."

"What was that?"

"I'm not sure how to say this." He admitted.

"Unless you're going to tell me you've been trying on my clothes, just say it." Lindsay hoped it would lighten the mood.

"Okay." He paused. "I love you."

TBC


	37. Chapter 37

"Come on Montana you have to give me something here, I just bare my soul and all." Danny said after a minute of silence after his confession.

"You're an idiot." Lindsay stated.

"Jeez thanks, I guess that's better than being a jerk." He sank back against the couch.

Lindsay moved and kissed him, mental cursing her broken foot.

"Just for the record I love you too." She told him.

"How come you never mentioned that before?" Danny asked.

"How come you never mentioned it before?" Lindsay countered.

"Because I only realised it earlier."

"Exactly." Lindsay stated.

"What?"

"It took you 24 hours to figure out why you were annoyed that I had lunch with your mother yesterday. If I told you I loved you before you would have probably bolted out the door. You weren't ready to hear it."

"So you were waiting for me to say it first?" He guessed.

"Maybe." Lindsay admitted.

"What would you have done if I said I wanted out?" Danny asked.

"Let you go."

"Seriously?"

"Danny people shouldn't be in relationships they don't want to be in. In the end it will be worse and people end up completely hating each other. At least this way it hurts for a while, but at least you can both have a little dignity."

"Sounds like you're speaking from experience."

"Not me, my college roommate. Her boyfriend dumped her, she couldn't let it go. It ended up with a restraining order and her downing a bottle of pills. Thankfully my class got cancelled and I found her in time, but she was never the same after that."

"That must have been hard." He tucked her hair behind her ear. "I do love you."

"I know. Me too." She kissed him. "But there are a few things we still need to talk about."

"I know."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay was sat at her desk doing paperwork when Stella entered.

"Hey Lindsay."

"Hey Stella."

"Danny seems in a better mood did you two work things out?"

"We were up until 2am talking but we're good." Lindsay replied.

"Good. So he got over you having lunch with his mother?"

"It turns out it wasn't really that was what was bothering him. It was just a catalyst."

"I'm glad you sorted things out." Stella told her.

"So do you have anything I can process? I've been doing paperwork for three hours."

"I have a few things that need to go through QD which would really help out. While I go to trace."

"Why don't you tell me what you're working so I have some context?" Lindsay suggested.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Danny is in a creepily good mood." Flack commented to Hawkes.

"He got over what was bothering him." Hawkes replied. "I know Stella and Lindsay went and saw a couple movies last night, so I'm guessing he had some time to figure it out."

"Good."

"I got those results back." Danny walked in. "Hey Flack."

"Hey Danny. How's Lindsay doing?"

"She's fine. She's in QD if you want to say hello."

"What do the results say?" Hawkes inquired.

"The blood is female, no hits in the database. But she's pregnant."

"Pregnant?" Flack questioned.

"That's what the test results say."

"How pregnant?" Hawkes asked taking the results from him.

"You know HCG levels better than me."

"HCG?" Flack questioned.

"Human Chorionic Gonadotropin. It's a hormone made by the placenta and is detected in urine and blood work. It's what home pregnancy tests test for." Hawkes explained. "It reaches a peak at around 12 weeks and reduces slightly and levels off at about 25 weeks. Looking at this I'd say we're looking for someone who is visibly pregnant."

"Someone who is about to pop?" Flack asked.

"No, it's not exact because every woman's level is different but I'd say around five or six months."

"That should be easier to spot." Danny pointed out.

TBC


	38. Chapter 38

Lindsay was taking a shower a few days after she'd had her cast off, they had just got home from work and Lindsay was still trying to get the smell of decomp out of her pores after four showers and all the lemons Danny could find.

When there was a knock on the door Danny got up to answer it.

He opened the door.

"Hello."

"I'm sorry, I'm must have the wrong apartment I was looking Lindsay Monroe."

"You have the right place." It dawned on Danny who she was. "Come in Mrs Monroe."

"Thank you."

"Lindsay your Mom is here." Danny called out.

"Funny." Lindsay came out of the bathroom dressed in her bath robe drying her hair on a towel. "Hey Mom."

"Lindsay."

"Have you met Danny?" Lindsay asked slightly in shock.

"Not formally."

"Mom this is Detective Danny Messer, we work together, Danny, this is my mother Lynne Monroe." Lindsay introduced them. "Don't make jokes." She whispered.

"It's nice to meet you Mrs Monroe. I should get going; I'll see you in the morning Lindsay." Danny told her.

"Okay, thanks for the lemons." Lindsay told him.

"It was nice to have met you Mrs Monroe, I'll see myself out." Danny grabbed his keys and wallet from the table and headed out the door.

"So what are you doing here Mom? Why didn't you call and let me know you were coming?"

"Your father is driving me crazy, so I packed a bag and caught the first plane to New York even thought I had to stop in Minneapolis." Lynne explained.

"Does Daddy know you're here?" Lindsay inquired.

"I left him a note."

"I'm going to call him and tell him you're here." Lindsay moved to pick up the phone. "How long are you staying?"

"A week should be enough for him to miss me."

"Mom, Dad loves you. He'll be missing you by now."

"If he notices I'm gone." Lynne muttered.

"I'm going to call Daddy. Make yourself at home."

"Then you can tell me why that young man was here." Lynne suggested.

"He was bringing me lemons, I worked a decomp today and I'm still trying to get the smell out of my skin."

CSI NY CSI NY

"I'm really sorry." Lindsay apologised as she poured both her and Danny some coffee at work the next morning. "I didn't know she would be turning up like that."

"It's okay." Danny assured her.

"She normally calls people before she visits."

"Who visits?" Stella asked.

"My Mom came to visit last night."

"Your Mom?" Stella questioned.

"Apparently my Dad is driving her crazy so when he left to go out to work, she packed a bag and went to the airport and caught the first plane to New York via Minneapolis." Lindsay explained. "She's staying for a week."

"Does your father know she's here?" Stella asked.

"He did after I called him; he hadn't found her note at that point."

"So he's just going to wait for her to come home?" Stella inquired.

"No. If it's anything like the past two years, he'll brood for a day, then spend a couple days trying to find people to cover for him, then come out and they'll have a nice couple of days and then go back home."

"They've done this before?" Danny questioned.

"They've been married 36 years. This seems to have been an annual thing for about the last ten years. Dad gets on Mom's nerves, she packs a bag and leaves for a week he goes after her they talk and everything is fine. Mom went to Boston last year, and to visit Clay the year before. Honestly I think it's her way of making him take a vacation for a few days."

"Well it's nice of her to visit." Stella said optimistically.

"It's nice to see both my parents." Lindsay said. "But I was just working up to telling Danny something."

"What?" Danny asked.

"My mother is making dinner tonight, she wants you to come. She'd like to meet you 'for more than two seconds while you're trying to make a run for the door' I believe were her exact words. She didn't believe whole lemons story even if it was true."

"She's your mother she'll have a keen nose for these things." Stella pointed out. "And Danny, think of it as reciprocity since Lindsay had lunch with your mother you can have dinner with hers."

"Can't I just send her up the Empire State Building like I did Becky?" Danny asked.

"My mother is more of a Central Park Zoo woman." Lindsay pointed out.

TBC


	39. Chapter 39

"So Mac what next?" Danny asked rubbing his hands together.

"You leave to go to your dinner." Mac told him.

"Stella mentioned that huh."

"She may have said something." Mac admitted.

"I can stay and help out." Danny offered.

"We're not going to be able to do anything tonight and he'll still be dead tomorrow." Mac told him. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Are you headed out too?" Danny asked.

"I have some paperwork I can catch up." Mac stated.

"No you're buying me a drink." Stella said from the doorway.

"Since when?" Mac asked.

"Since now." Stella replied. "I'm thinking something with an umbrella in it. Have a nice dinner Danny."

"See you tomorrow."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay had told Danny not to bring wine since her mother didn't drink much, but she did like daisies.

Danny knocked on the door knowing it would be a bad idea to open the door with his key since Lindsay's mother was there.

"Hey." Lindsay smiled at him. "Couldn't convince Mac to let you work any longer?"

"Stella's dragging him for a drink." Danny replied. "This is for you." He pulled a single red rose from behind her back.

"Thank you. Come in."

Lynne Monroe was just coming out of the kitchen.

"Mom you remember Danny from yesterday."

"It's nice to see you again Mrs Monroe. Lindsay didn't know what we were having for dinner so I brought you these instead." He handed her a small bouquet of daisies.

"Thank you and call me Lynne, Mrs Monroe is my mother-in-law."

Lindsay couldn't help but laugh.

"What?" Danny asked her.

"Sorry I just had the same conversation with your mother." Lindsay recalled.

"You've met his mother?" Lynne questioned.

"We had lunch last month, she makes very good lasagne." Lindsay replied.

"Dinner should be ready in a few minutes, why don't you both go and sit down." Lynne suggested. "I'll put these in water."

"I'm really sorry about this." Lindsay whispered to Danny.

"It's okay." Danny assured her.

…

They made small talk as they ate. Lynne asking Danny questions.

"You should go to the Empire State Building, Becky liked the view." Danny told her.

"You met my daughter?" Lynne asked.

Lindsay shot Danny a look.

"Becky came with one of her professors to identify the body of a friend of his a few months ago. She was only here for the 24 hours." Lindsay explained. "Didn't I tell you?"

"I don't think so."

"Danny promised Stella he'd take me to see the Empire State Building because I hadn't seen it so when Becky came to town he suggested we go so she could get a good view of New York." Lindsay explained. "There is a great view, especially at night you can see all the lights."

"I see. Is there anything else you haven't told me?"

"I broke my foot on my birthday." Lindsay replied. "But it's fine now."

"We've spoken at least six times since then and you never mentioned it."

"It was nothing really. I fell over something and had a couple hairline fractures of my metatarsals. I had three medical examiners look at it and take an x-ray; one of the other cops we work with drove me to the hospital to get a cast and crutches."

"Where were you during all of this?" Lynne asked Danny.

"Danny was the one who made me have someone take a look at it. I thought putting an ice-pack on it would be sufficient and since I refused to go to the hospital or a doctor he took me to the lab to get someone to look at it. Then made sure that someone took me to the hospital and brought me home. He got Stella to bring me dinner since he had to work, which turned into a little party since everyone else turned up. I've got good friends here that look out for me."

TBC


	40. Chapter 40

"Hey." Danny whispered in Lindsay's ear as she closed her locker the next morning. Lindsay had known he was there from the minute he had entered the room.

"Hey yourself."

"I missed you." Danny told her.

"I saw you less than twelve hours ago." Lindsay turned around to face him.

"I'm used to you sleeping this far away from me." He had his thumb and forefinger pressed tightly together.

"I know me too."

"And with out my morning kiss I get grumpy."

"Danny this is the locker room and anyone could walk in." Lindsay pointed out.

"So." He put a hand either side of her head and kissed her.

"I'll come back later." Hawkes said walking in.

"Not on my account." Lindsay said breaking the kiss and ducking under Danny's arm. "We'll see how things go for lunch."

"You couldn't have been two minutes later?" Danny asked.

"Sorry." Hawkes apologised. "Her mother cramping your style?"

"You have no idea." Danny replied.

"So how did your dinner go?"

"Okay, I don't think she hates me yet and Lindsay ended up confessing about breaking her foot and Becky visiting."

"Her mother didn't know?"

"No." Danny replied. "Although she look at me like I was corrupting her daughter."

"I doubt Lindsay is that corruptible, although she does have that tattoo doesn't she?"

"How do you know about that?" Danny closed his locker door.

"She told me. A heart on her hip which she got with a bunch of other people after she graduated high school, it covers the scar she got from falling off her bike when she was a kid."

"She told you?"

"I doubt she meant to but she started a conversation Stella was there; it was a few months ago." Hawkes closed his locker door.

"Hey Danny." Mac stuck his head in the door. "We've got a lead."

"I'm coming."

CSI NY CSI NY

"How did dinner with your Mom go?" Stella inquired as she and Lindsay processed a scene.

"She could give any cop I know a run for their money with her interrogation skills, but she likes him."

"That's always a good start." Stella stated.

"I spoke to my Dad he'll be here on Thursday." Lindsay explained. "I'm hoping I can convince them both to go to Boston to see Becky for the weekend before they go home."

"You don't want your father to meet Danny?"

"Dad will be fine once he gets over the fact that I never mentioned Danny in that context to him and get them talking about sport and they'll be fine, but I realised something yesterday."

"What's that?" Stella asked.

"I like my independence. As much as I love my family it's nice not to have them watching over my shoulder all the time. I like the freedom of them not knowing everything that happens."

"Like having your boyfriend sleep over?" Stella guessed.

"That too."

"What's your mother doing today anyway?"

"She's going to Bloomingdales. I think she said something about looking in Saks window as well. I told her I'd take her to Central Park later if things go okay, I'm on call tonight."

"Come to New York and shop is a good idea."

"She'll probably end up at Macy's as well."

"Hitting all the big stores is a good idea, especially after pay day." Stella smiled.

"She has the shoppers guide to New York." Lindsay admitted. "I'm hoping we won't have to ship everything she buys back home."

"Let her have fun." Stella stated. "If this is her annual vacation."

"I know."

CSI NY CSI NY

"So how did dinner with Lindsay's mom go?" Marty asked Danny later that day when he'd gone down to the morgue for something.

"How did you know about that?" Danny inquired.

"We hear all sorts down here."

"Just fine." Danny replied.

TBC


	41. Chapter 41

"Mom, I've just got to change and then we can go." Lindsay said as she walked into the apartment. "I'm on call but we should be okay for a while." She stopped.

"Hello Lindsay." Caroline Messer greeted.

"Carrie hi." Lindsay was a little shocked she didn't expect to see Danny's mother sitting next to hers on the couch.

"Carrie was just telling me about Staten Island."

"That's great Mom." She paused. "How exactly did you two meet?"

"I called here to leave a message on your machine since Danny hadn't called me back, to remind him that it is his father's birthday next week and we're having a party and that I wanted him to invite you too."

"Depending on which night it is that would be great." Lindsay replied.

"We got talking." Her mother continued. "Since it was Carrie's day off we went shopping and she showed me around a little."

"Umm, are you coming to Central Park with us?" Lindsay inquired.

"That would be nice." Carrie stated.

"I just need to change." Lindsay ducked into her bedroom and closed the door. She pulled her cell phone off her belt and hit one of the speed dial numbers. "Pick up, pick up, pick up." She muttered.

_"Hey _ _Montana__."_ Danny answered. _"Miss me already."_

"You have no idea." Lindsay replied. Danny could tell buy her tone that she didn't mean it in the jovial sense he had intended.

"_What happened?" _He asked.

"You know how you were a little freaked out when I had lunch with your mother?"

"_Yes."_

"How would you feel if I told you that she's sat on my couch having spent the day with my mother?"

_"What?"_

"I know. Apparently she called here to remind you about your father's birthday party which you were supposed to invite me to and they got chatting. So they spent the day shopping. Now your Mom is coming to Central Park with us."

"_Okay, okay, okay."_ Danny said. "_What are we going do?" _

"You could meet us in Central Park if you're not doing anything." Lindsay suggested.

"_What are you doing right now?" _

"Hiding out in my bedroom supposedly changing, but actually on the phone to you." Lindsay replied.

"_Tell me where to meet you."_

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay had Danny meet them near Conservatory Waters.

"That's where Danny fell in." Lindsay pointed out the spot showing them the pictures.

"Do you have to tell everybody that Montana?" Danny asked from behind her.

"It's funny, especially when you came back to the lab looking like a drowned rat." Lindsay smiled.

"Danny what are you doing here?" His mother asked.

"Nice to see you too Ma."

"Don't be glib."

"Lindsay mentioned a nice stroll through the park." Danny replied.

They wandered around Central Park looking at things, most of the main attractions like the zoo and carousel were long since closed but since it was the height of summer it was still plenty light.

Lindsay's pager bleeped.

She pulled out her cell phone and dialled dispatch.

"This is Monroe…. Where?... I'll be there in fifteen minutes." She hung up. "Mom, Carrie, I'm sorry but I have to go."

"Of course." Her mother said.

"Danny." Lindsay nodded to the side.

"What's up?" Danny inquired.

"There was a call in for a jewellery store heist in progress, there was a patrol car around the corner so they responded, and one of the robbers shot one of the officers before they made off. I have to go and process."

"Want me to come with you?" Danny offered.

"Mac and Stella will meet me there." Lindsay told him. "Can you make sure my mom gets back to my place okay?"

"Of course."

"I'll see you tomorrow." She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Call if you need any help." Danny told her.

"I think we can handle it. But thanks."

TBC


	42. Chapter 42

"I'm sorry you only got a few hours off." Mac apologised to Lindsay and Stella as she arrived at the scene.

"It's okay I left Danny with our mothers." Lindsay replied. "How's the officer who was injured?"

"His vest caught most of it, although he took one in the arm. He should be fine." Mac assured them. "Flack's gone to secure his vest and the bullets at the hospital, I'll take out. So you two have inside."

"Did you say mothers as in plural?" Stella asked as they walked inside careful not to step on the broken glass.

"Carrie called my apartment to remind Danny about his father's birthday party and to remember to invite me and my mother picked up the phone they started talking and spent the day together. I left Danny supervising them on a walk in Central Park."

"How did Danny take that?"

"A little surprised." Lindsay admitted. "Wow!" She saw the scene. "This is more than a little smash and grab job."

"You start on that side, I'll start on the other and we'll meet in the middle." Stella suggested.

CSI NY CSI NY

"How's it going Montana?" Danny asked from the doorway.

"Is it that time already?" Lindsay yawned. "Sorry."

"I'm early." Danny admitted. "I brought you coffee."

"How many?" Lindsay asked.

"How about a Carmel Macchiato with a triple shot of espresso?" Danny offered.

"My hero, I knew there was a reason I liked you. I just need a few minutes to put these away."

"So how much are those diamonds worth?" Danny inquired.

"They aren't diamonds." Lindsay replied.

"They're not?"

"No the fractal pattern of everyone I tested is wrong from diamonds." Lindsay replied.

"You think it's an insurance scam?"

"What?" Lindsay turned to look at him.

"Jewellers are insured pretty well if they have millions of dollars worth of stones, swap out all the real stones for fake ones, have someone steal them and claim it on the insurance, the insurance pays out and they still have the original stones. Kerching."

"So if you suddenly come into a lot of money I should be looking at insurance fraud?" Lindsay asked.

"No try the nearest state with lotto." Danny replied.

Lindsay finished repacking the evidence and stuck the red label over it and initialled it.

"Now where is that coffee?"

Danny handed her the cup as they walked.

"Any of that for me?" Stella appeared.

Danny handed her a cup.

"Thanks." Stella replied. "Did you find anything?"

"All those diamonds we found aren't diamonds and Danny has a theory."

Danny told Stella his theory as they ate the bagels he'd brought as well.

"Let's see where the evidence takes us." Stella suggested.

"Does it lead anywhere near a nap?" Lindsay inquired yawning.

"Why don't you go and take a nap for an hour or so?" Stella suggested. "Mac's couch should be free. He keeps a blanket and a pillow in a box in the corner."

"Sounds good." Lindsay agreed.

"A triple shot of espresso and you're to going to sleep, good luck." Danny teased.

"By the way did Mom get back to my place okay?" Lindsay inquired.

"I walked her to the door myself." Danny confirmed. "Then I took my mother home."

"Good. I'm going to sleep, so wake me up in an hour." Lindsay climbed off of her stool.

"She'll need lots of coffee when she wakes up; she's grumpy in the morning." Danny warned Stella.

"She'll be fine, when she wakes up I'll take a nap and by then it will be a reasonable enough hour to get Flack and go and find out why every item of jewellery we found had fake stones in it and why the surveillance cameras were turned off."

"So it is an inside job?" Danny asked.

"Or they just happened to switch it off. I'll have Flack check out their insurance policy."

"I guess I should get to work too." Danny stated. "Evidence does not process it's self."

"Technically that's not true sometimes it does." Stella replied. "Or there could beMac size elves who have gotten fed up with making shoes."

They both headed back to continue process the evidence on their respective cases.

TBC


	43. Chapter 43

Lindsay stood in the doorway watching Danny work; she'd been up for over thirty six hours if you didn't include the littered one hour nap she'd taken.

"I don't know about Montana, but in New York we have laws against loitering." Danny said he hadn't turned around but he knew she was there.

"I didn't want to interrupt."

"You're not." He assured her. "So what's up?"

"Do you like being right?" Lindsay asked entering the room.

"Doesn't everyone?" Danny inquired. "Right about what?"

"It was an insurance scam. The jewellers hasn't been doing very good business, some of their stones came from questionable sources, so the owner swapped out all the real stones for good simulations and had his brother-in-law and best friend break in and steal the contents. We found all the real stones when we searched his house."

"I told you."

"He even called in an anonyms tip to the police about the robbery, but he didn't expect them to be right around the corner, and no-one was supposed to get hurt. Flack and friends are out picking up the robbers now."

"Good work." Danny told her.

"They should all do some decent time." Lindsay crossed her arms.

"That's good." Danny stated. "How's the injured cop doing?"

"He should be out of the hospital tomorrow, and back on duty in about a week."

"Good good."

"Anyway Mac says Stella and I can go home, we'll do the paperwork tomorrow. I just wanted to say goodbye."

"Are you okay apart from being tired?"

"My mom is going to go give me a hard time for work too hard." Lindsay sighed fingering her necklace. "I'll deal with her and then go and get some sleep."

"You can go to my place and sleep for a few hours if you want." He offered.

"Thanks for the offer, but I'd just have to go home afterwards and this involves just one trip."

"Call me if you want to talk later." Danny suggested.

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Sweet dreams Montana." He told her.

"Lindsay must have just come by." Hawkes said when he entered the room.

"Why do you say that?" Danny asked.

"Because you have that goofy grin on your face you get when she's around." Hawkes replied.

"They solved their case; she and Stella are heading home since they have been up all night."

CSI NY CSI NY

The lights were off in Lindsay's apartment when she made it home. She found a note from her mother telling her where she would be and that she would be home at six.

Lindsay made herself a cup of warm milk, took a quick shower and crawled into bed which is where she remained.

Lynne came home and she let her daughter sleep. When there was a knock on the door Lynne got up to answer it. She checked the peephole before she opened.

"Danny." She said.

"Hey Lynne."

"Lindsay is asleep."

"I know. I was actually here to see you."

"Me?" Lynne questioned.

"Since Lindsay is exhausted and needs to sleep I was wondering if I could show you some more of New York. I know most of the big tourist spots are closed but there are still some great places that you can see and I know all the good places to eat."

"That would be nice." Lynne smiled. "Let me leave Lindsay a note."

"Why don't I write her a note while you get your purse and a sweater, it can get cold at night here?" He suggested.

"Okay."

Danny scribbled Lindsay a note in case she woke up, before he and Lynne left.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay woke up a little after ten feeling hungry.

The living room was empty.

"Mom?" She questioned. She looked around and found her apartment empty before she found the note.

_Montana,_

_I'm taking your Mom out to show her around New York so you can get some undisturbed sleep, I'll make sure she eats and I'll have her home before midnight. Sweet dreams. Love Danny._

TBC


	44. Chapter 44

A/N: Since ENGLAND just won and are through to the quarter finals of the World Cup here is a second post to celebrate.

Lindsay was waiting outside the building for Danny to arrive the next morning.

"Hey Montana." He said when he walked up behind her.

"Hey." She replied.

"Sleep well?"

"Yes thank you." She smiled and grabbed his hand and pulled him to the middle of the sidewalk. Danny eyed her curiously before Lindsay wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

"Good morning to you too Montana." He smiled. "Just out of curiosity what was that for?"

"Being nice to my mother and taking her out last night so I could sleep."

"And why couldn't we do that over there?" Danny asked.

"Because that is the property of the city of New York and the New York Police Department, this is a public sidewalk."

"You Montana girls are very exacting about rules."

"You have to know the rules, before you know how to get around them." Lindsay winked at him. "We'd better move before we're late."

"You think Mac would buy it that I was late because I was accosted by a beautiful woman in the street?" Danny asked.

"Probably not." Lindsay replied.

They all went through a quick meeting with Mac handing out assignment and leaving Stella and Lindsay to finish up their paperwork and to take whatever came in next.

"Hey Danny." Stella said on the way.

"Yeah?"

"That's not really your colour."

"What?" He looked at a shirt.

"I meant the lipstick."

Danny swiped at his lips and the remains of Lindsay's lipstick had come off on his fingers.

"I'm going to kill her." He muttered.

"I wouldn't say that in front of a room full of cops." Hawkes patted him on the shoulder.

CSI NY CSI NY

"How's it going?" Stella came to check up on Lindsay two hours later.

"Almost done." Lindsay replied.

"Did you notice that you left traces of your lipstick on Danny this morning?"

"Yes." Lindsay admitted. "He took my mother out last night so I could get some undisturbed sleep."

"That's sweet. We've got a case. Municipal workers were checking out a blockage in the sewer tunnels and found a body."

"Sewers a great way to start a morning." Lindsay sighed. "I need two minutes to finish this."

"I'll grab our kits and you can meet me at the car."

"Thanks Stella."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay and Stella logged all the evidence into the evidence room before trekking through the lab.

"What is that smell?" Danny asked talking as he stood talking to Hawkes. "It smells like a sewer."

"I wouldn't turn around if I were you." Hawkes suggested.

Danny slowly turned around. Both women looked slightly frazzled.

"Hey, what happened to you two?"

"DB in a sewer, a sewer with lots of rats."

"That definitely explains the smell." Danny said.

Both women scowled at him.

"We're going to take showers." Stella stated as they started to walk off.

"One minute." Danny told Hawkes before he caught up with Lindsay. "Need someone to scrub your back?" He offered.

"Don't make me shoot you." Lindsay responded.

"Okay okay okay." He held up his hands and backed off.

He chuckled as he walked back to Hawkes.

"What's so funny?" Flack inquired as he approached.

"Lindsay and Stella have been making friends with the Ninja Turtles."

"What?" Flack asked.

"DB in a sewer." Hawkes told him. "They brought back the smell with them as well."

"Ah." Flack stated. "I've got a warrant."

"Let's go." Danny rubbed his hands together.

TBC


	45. Chapter 45

Danny had offered to go with Lindsay to pick her up her father but Lindsay had declined. She told him it was easier if she picked him up and that he met Danny at a later date.

So Danny had dropped her off at the airport and then headed back to the lab to finish processing some evidence.

Lindsay spotted her father's cowboy hat before she spotted him through the crowds.

"Hey Daddy." Lindsay ran up and hugged him.

"Hey Pumpkin."

"I missed you." Lindsay whispered.

"I missed you too. Let me get a look at you." Lindsay stepped back so her father could look at her. "You look great."

"You don't look bad yourself either." Lindsay smiled. "But you should have seen me a few days ago when I came out of a sewer."

"I'm not going to ask." He father wisely stated.

"If you've got your bag lets go and grab a cab and get out of here."

"Okay." He replied.

…

"I'm going to take your mother to a hotel so you can have your apartment back again."

"Daddy, decent hotels are expensive here. You can stay at my place and I'll go and stay with Danny while you're here."

"Who is Danny?" Her father asked.

"Danny would be my boyfriend."

"Why haven't I heard anything about a boyfriend before?" Her father inquired.

"I didn't want to mention him unless it worked out."

"How long has this been going on?"

"A few months, you'll get to meet him tomorrow probably." Lindsay told him.

"Has your mother met him?" Her father inquired.

"Yes. We had him over for dinner, then we went for a walk in Central Park with his mother and then Danny took Mom out and showed her a New Yorker's perspective on New York while I got some sleep from being up all night on case. Mom likes him, so does Becky."

"Becky met him?" He asked.

"A while ago." Lindsay admitted. "Don't worry you'll like him, he's a good guy."

"What does he do?"

"He's a cop. He works at the crime lab with me." Lindsay replied. "You'll like him Daddy."

"I'll reserve judgement."

"Okay."

CSI NY CSI NY

It was about nine pm when Danny heard a knock on his door. He switched the TV off and got up to open it.

"Hi." Lindsay smiled.

"Hi." Danny gave her a quick kiss. "Not that it's not nice to see you, but what are you doing here?"

"I was wondering if I could stay for a few days."

"Sure." Danny took the bag she had in her hand from her. "What about your parents?"

"My father was going to take my Mom to a hotel but it's safer and cheaper for them to stay at my place."

"Do they know where you are?" He asked.

"They have the phone number and my cell if they need anything." Lindsay slipped off her jacket and put it over the back of the chair. "My father wants to meet you tomorrow. So if you're not doing anything after work tomorrow."

"I'm on call but it shouldn't be a problem."

"Just show him your Derek Jetter ball." Lindsay suggested.

"You think showing him a baseball is the way to get him to like me?"

"You don't know anything about cattle; horses and you probably couldn't tell the difference between a wheat field and a corn field if your life depended on it, so sport is a good topic. He knows the results of every World Series since it started in 1903."

"Your Dad likes baseball."

"Yes. You should see his baseball card collection, it's worth a fortune."

"He has a baseball card collection?"

Lindsay nodded and sat down.

"It was one of the few things he brought with him when he came to work for my grandfather."

"I think I missed a step here." Danny said.

"The ranch I grew up on was originally my maternal grandparents; it's been in the family for about four generations. My father came from Texas to be a ranch hand, worked his way up to foreman, married my Mom, they bought my grandparents out when they wanted to retire, they bought and RV and went touring the country until they died a couple years ago. Technically I inherit a quarter of the ranch when my parents die. It's got to be worth a couple hundred thousand."

"An heiress." Danny winked at her.

"We'd never sell it. My brother will keep working it because he loves doing it, Clay will probably go back and help out when he retires from coaching. I've still got my house."

"You have a house?" Danny questioned.

"We all have one; it's rented out to one of the ranch hands and his family since I moved to New York. Since we all built the place it's not like it's mortgaged, so the money goes into a fund which pays for the upkeep of the building, my student loan payments and for my horse. It's how I can afford to live in New York. Where exactly did you think I live in Montana?"

"With your parents or an apartment…"

"I have a house it was 21st birthday present. But enough about Montana, I remember a conversation where you said you missed being close to me, why don't you come over here and prove it to me?"

"That's an idea I can get behind." Danny replied.

TBC


	46. Chapter 46

"Why am I nervous?" Danny whispered to Lindsay as they walked towards her apartment the following evening.

"It will be fine." Lindsay squeezed his hand. "Just remember if you run out of things to talk about he likes baseball and he's a big Cowboys fan."

"Cowboys?"

"I told you my Dad's from Texas. He doesn't like ice hockey or basketball."

Lindsay gave him a quick kiss before she pulled out her keys to unlock her apartment door.

"Mom? Dad?" Lindsay called.

"Hey Pumpkin." He father came and gave her a hug. After almost forty years living in Montana, he'd lost most of his Texan accent but there were still hints there.

"Daddy, I'd like you to meet someone. This is Danny Messer, Danny this is my father Ben Monroe." Lindsay made introductions.

"Nice to meet you sir." Danny shook his hand.

"You too."

"Where's Mom?" Lindsay asked.

"Trying to get her hair right. You know how she gets when she goes to the big city."

"I'll be right back." Lindsay told Danny.

Lindsay disappeared into her bedroom to find her mother.

"Hey Mom."

"Lindsay. You didn't leave Danny with your father did you?"

"He'll be fine." Lindsay replied. "I told him to stick to baseball and football."

"He'll give him a hard time because he's your father it's only natural."

"Dad tries but he's not that good at it, he's too nice. Which is why Adam and Clay and Becky to an extent always looked over my shoulder."

Lynne smiled as Lindsay backed up so she could peak out the door.

Danny and her father were just stood there not saying anything much.

"Men." Lindsay muttered. She walked over to her dressing table and picked up the baseball that sat there.

"I have been meaning to ask you about that." her mother said.

"It's Danny's he caught it at a game he took me to." Lindsay replied as walked to the door and opened it. "Danny, catch." She tossed the ball to him. "Tell him where you got it and we'll be ready in a minute."

CSI NY CSI NY

"They seem to be getting on okay." Lindsay commented to her mother as they were in the bathroom of the restaurant.

"They'll be fine. Although your father maybe asking what his intentions are. I still remember his face when Daddy asked him that, it was the funniest thing I've ever seen. Ben spluttered and couldn't get any words out, and then he blurted out that he wanted to marry me. So your grandfather patted him on the back and said it was about time he got me off his hands."

"Pops said that?" Lindsay questioned.

"Yes. Although I did feel a bit like a cow up for auction to the highest bidder and your Daddy did wait four months before he asked me. We got married a month later and your brother was born ten months later."

"I didn't know that."

"Well it took me a couple years to get him to stop thinking of the boss's daughter who he had to keep his hands off. I wore ridiculous short cut offs and tight tops and given this was the late sixties."

"I love you Mom." Lindsay said.

"I love you too honey." Lynne gave her daughter a hug. "Let's get back."

….

They were waiting for their deserts when Lindsay's cell phone rang.

"Sorry." She apologised as she pulled it out of her purse. "Monroe." She answered. "No he's here, hang on a second." She put her hand over the phone. "Do you have your cell phone?"

"It's on vibrate in my jacket pocket." His jacket was hung over the back of the chair.

"Hawkes has been trying to get a hold of you for ten minutes." Lindsay handed him her cell phone.

"Hey Hawkes… I put it in my jacket pocket and I don't have it on… Where?" Lindsay handed him a pen and paper so he could scribbled down the address. "I'm only a few blocks from there; I'll be ten minutes… Bye." He hung up. "Thanks." He handed Lindsay back her phone and the pen. "I'm sorry I have to go. I'm on call tonight." He apologised.

"It's okay." Lindsay assured him.

"Ben it was nice to meet you." Danny said as he pulled his wallet out of his pocket.

"It's okay I've got this." Lindsay told him.

"Are you sure?" Lindsay nodded. Danny gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "Lynne it was nice to excuse me, goodnight."

Lindsay watched him leave fingering her necklace.

"Does that happen a lot?" Ben inquired.

"Dad being a cop isn't a 9-5 job, being a CSI is even worse hours. We're only on primary call twice a week and secondary call once a week. I did it a couple days ago, leaving Mom with Danny and Carrie. It happens."

"What did you think of him?" Lynne inquired.

"He seems nice enough." Ben stated.

"High praise." Lynne smiled.

TBC


	47. Chapter 47

After Lindsay had put her parents in a cab, she headed to the lab.

In a few hours all her paperwork was up to date, so she walked it to Mac's office and dropped it off.

"Lindsay?" Hawkes said as she was walking towards the break room.

"Hey." She smiled.

"I thought you were with your parents, I know Danny said I pulled him away from dinner."

"They headed back to my place." Lindsay replied.

"You didn't go home?"

"I'm staying with Danny while both my parents are in town, but there is a guy in his building that gives me the creeps so I'd rather not be there alone." She explained. "So I thought I'd come by and catch up on some paperwork, but that's all done. So do you have anything I can process?"

"We got about a hundred prints if you're looking for something to keep you busy. Most of them are probably our vics, we've got elimination prints."

"Sounds good." Lindsay replied.

Hawkes handed her the bag with all the prints in it.

"It's already been logged into evidence."

Lindsay signed for the evidence.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey." Danny walked a few hours later. "Hawkes finally mentioned you were here. Why didn't you head back to my place and go to bed?"

"I wasn't tired." Lindsay replied. "I've done all my paperwork so I offered to help out so Hawkes had me go through these prints."

"Any luck?"

"One hundred and one." Lindsay stated.

"What?"

"One hundred and one prints belong to the victim. I have two that don't. I'm running them now."

"You've managed to go through a hundred and three prints in a couple hours?"

"Your vic has distinctive fingerprints, including lots of pre-existing scars which make it easier to make a visual match on."

"Impressive."

"I'll let you know if I get a match but it could be a while."

"Since you're here, how did I really do with your father?" Danny asked.

"You passed muster." Lindsay replied.

"That's good right?"

"It means he won't be hunting you down with his shot gun." Lindsay replied. "You don't have anything to worry about my parents like you."

"Good good."

"I'll let you know about the prints." She told him.

"See you later."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay was startled awake a few hours later when the computer beeped with a match. She was grateful that she had put all the rest of the fingerprints away before she fell asleep watching the computers run through looking for a match.

Lindsay printed off the results.

Then the other computer beeped.

She printed those results as well.

Stowing the evidence and dropping back at the evidence lock up, she went in search of Danny and Hawkes.

"Do you want the good news or the good news?" Lindsay asked when she finally tracked them down.

"Does that involve coffee?" Hawkes inquired.

"No but it does involve a suspect who has two hits." Lindsay replied.

"Two?" Danny questioned.

"David Grace. He shoplifted something to the value of about fifty bucks the day after he turned 18." She showed the NYPD results. "Then we have this results which is from the Armed Forces registry. He's a Corporal at West Point."

"It looks like we're going to give the US Army a little visit today."

"I'll go and put on the coffee." She left them with the results.

"Thanks Lindsay." Hawkes told her. "Do you want to call them or should I?"

"You call them and ask if they know where he is. I'll call Mac."

"It's three am." Hawkes pointed out.

"Mac likes to know when we're going to aggravate the military." Danny pointed out. "Once we're done we may as well get some sleep, we'll finish everything else up later."

TBC


	48. Chapter 48

Lindsay propped her head up on her hand and looked at Danny who was sleeping next to her. She gently blew on his neck.

Danny brought a hand up to swat it. Lindsay smiled and blew again.

"Montana, go back to sleep." Danny mumbled.

"I can't do that." Lindsay replied.

"Why not?"

She leant over to whisper in his ear.

"Because your alarm clock is about to go off in five, four, three, two, one."

The alarm clock rang.

Danny pulled his hand over from under the covers and banged around until he stopped the noise.

"How did you know that?"

"I've been watching the clock for a few minutes." She gave him a kiss.

"You know for someone who only had a few hours sleep and who is generally grumpy in the mornings, you're surprisingly perky."

"It's a nice day outside and I got a few more hours sleep than you did."

"When?" Danny asked.

"I fell asleep on the bag with all the fingerprints in while the computer was running."

"Okay." Danny was still half asleep.

"How about we conserve some water?" Lindsay suggested which woke Danny right up.

CSI NY CSI NY

"So why exactly was Lindsay here running fingerprints?" Mac asked Danny.

"She came in after I skipped out on dinner with her parents when I got the call. I didn't know she was here for hours; she apparently had done all her paperwork and ran into Hawkes. She offered to run the 103 prints we got. Two hits on the same guy."

"I just got off the phone with the Army." Hawkes walked in. "Cpl Grace just reported in, they are going to hold him until we can get there to talk to him."

Danny looked at Mac.

"Don't offend anyone." Mac told them. "I want you back before the end of the day."

"Road trip." Danny rubbed his hands together.

"Get directions, and have Lindsay run anything that you have left to analyse since she already seems to be involved."

"Mac she offered." Hawkes pointed out.

"Don't keep the Army waiting."

CSI NY

"Hey Montana." Danny walked into the break room where she and Stella were getting some coffee.

"Want some coffee?" Lindsay offered.

"I'm fine. Mac said to ask you to finish up the last pieces of evidence we didn't get to last night and the DNA results should be back soon."

"Sure." Lindsay replied.

"Why can't you handle your own evidence?" Stella asked.

"Hawkes and I are going on a road trip."

"A road trip where?"

"West Point." Danny replied.

"How about you finish the evidence and Lindsay and I go to West Point?" Stella suggested.

"Got a thing for men in uniform there Stella?" Danny joked.

"What woman doesn't? I think it's genetic." She sipped her coffee.

Danny looked at Lindsay.

"Hey don't look at me I happen to agree with her. A couple thousand years of knights in shining armour rescuing you, it has to be genetic or at least in the chemistry of the brain."

"Oh really." Danny crossed his arms.

"Attraction is all about chemical reactions and the brain firing off the right neurons in the synapses." Lindsay explained.

"Good thing you still have your uniform." Stella patted his shoulder. "Have a good trip and I'll catch up with you later Lindsay."

"Okay." Lindsay replied.

"So men in uniform huh?"

"I have a thing for firemen." Lindsay winked at him. "Have a good trip and I'll let you know if I find anything."

"Thanks."

TBC


	49. Chapter 49

"Hey Adam, do you have Danny's DNA results yet?" Lindsay inquired.

"He's got you doing his scut work for him?" Adam questioned.

"He finally annoyed me so much I sent him to the Army."

"The Army?" Adam repeated.

"Relax, I ran 103 prints for them last night and 101 can back to the victim and two came back to a Army Corporal at West Point. Danny and Hawkes went out to interview him."

"And stuck you with their evidence." Adam guessed.

"Actually it was Mac's idea. So the DNA results?"

"If you want to run and get me some coffee I'll have them for you in five minutes."

"Black with two sugars right?" Lindsay asked.

"How did you know that?"

"I'm paid to be observant." Lindsay replied. "I'll be right back."

Lindsay knew how hard the lab techs worked and how the CSI's nagged them for results, anything she could do keep the relationship working smoothly, if that meant getting Adam some coffee while she waited for results she would.

When Lindsay got all the results in she called Hawkes.

"_Hawkes."_ He answered the phone.

"It's Lindsay; I've got the results for you. But can you do me a favour and pretend to flirt with me while I tell you them." She requested.

"_For what reason?"_ Hawkes inquired.

"It will drive Danny crazy." Lindsay replied.

"_Works for me."_

Hawkes flirted with her as she gave him the results.

"_I'll see you later."_ Hawkes said at the end of the call.

"Who was that?" Danny inquired as Hawkes hung up.

"Lindsay, she said to say hello."

"That was Montana?" Danny questioned.

"God, she's right you are so easy to wind up." Hawkes smiled. "All the DNA belonged to the victim but she did find fibres consistent with the a military uniform. Tox-screen came back too, the victim had traces of Rohypnol in her system and the rape kit came back negative."

"Maybe soldier boy drugged her and couldn't get it up, so he killed her instead." Danny suggested.

"It's a possibility." Hawkes agreed.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay was waiting by the elevator to come so she could head out to a new scene. When the doors opened Flack walked out.

"Hey Lindsay have you seen Danny?"

"West Point." Lindsay replied.

"West Point?" Flack repeated.

"The fingerprints of a Cpl Grace were found at their scene last night; he and Hawkes went out to talk to him." Lindsay explained. "Was it something important?"

"I got four tickets to the Yankees game tonight; I was going to see if Danny and Hawkes wanted to go. You could come with the extra ticket if you want." Flack offered.

"I'm sure Danny will want to go…" She paused. "Actually you could take my Dad."

"Your dad?" Flack questioned.

"He's a huge baseball fan but doesn't get to go to Major League games all that often. It would nice for him to spend some time with Danny." She paused. "You don't have to take him it's your ticket."

"If Danny and Hawkes want to come we'll invite your dad." Flack told her. "I'll call them later."

"Thank you." Lindsay kissed his cheek. "Now I have to go." She pressed the button to call the elevator again which had gone while they had been talking.

"Where are you headed?"

"China Town, a dog found a severed head."

"Are Mac and Stella meeting you there?" Flack asked.

"No they're uptown. I had to stay here and run the rest of Danny's evidence through, so I get to work this alone."

"I'm coming with you."

"I think they already assigned a detective to the case." Lindsay pointed out.

"Some dodgy things have been going down in that area for the past few months, you'd rather have someone you know watching your back than whoever was the nearest to the scene when the call came in."

"I'm taking my own car." Lindsay stated.

"Works for me."

TBC


	50. Chapter 50

Lindsay was going over what little evidence she had found, after hours of searching no corresponding body had turned up to go with the head.

She rubbed her eyes.

"Case not going well Montana?" A familiar voice asked from behind her.

"I see you didn't decide to join up while you were out there." Lindsay turned around.

"Not one for all that marching." Danny shrugged.

"How did it go with Cpl Grace?"

"He lawyered up with a JAG lawyer by the time we got there. A JAG lawyer who wouldn't let him say anything."

"Is someone feeling guilty?" Lindsay asked.

"I don't know. But we took his clothes, they have blood on them, we need to run DNA." Danny explained.

"So you brought him back with you?" Lindsay guessed.

"The Army wouldn't let us."

"What?"

"Mac talked to them, they are bringing him here on Monday for further questioning." Danny explained the compromise.

"Won't that give them time to cook up a defence?" Lindsay asked.

"Probably. But it's Mac's deal. Dragging him off an Army base in handcuffs wasn't exactly going to be easy."

"I guess not."

"So what are you working on?" Danny inquired.

"Severed head." Lindsay replied. "A dog found it in China Town."

"No body to go with it?"

"Not that we could find." Lindsay admitted.

"And China Town?" Danny questioned.

"Don't worry my bodyguard came with me."

"Bodyguard?" Danny stepped closer.

"When I told Flack that I was going over there alone since you were out of town and Mac and Stella were working a case uptown, he insisted that he go with me. Something about some bad things rumbling in China Town. But considering there were 12 uniforms and two other detectives there I think I was okay."

"It's better when you have someone you know to watch your back."

"I know." Lindsay replied.

"Talking of Flack he called earlier and invited Hawkes and I to the Yankees game tonight. Is it okay if I go?" Danny asked.

"Danny I'm not your mother, you don't have to ask my permission to go to a ball game with your friends." Lindsay pointed out.

"Right." Danny scratched the back of his head.

"Beside Flack already mentioned it when he invited me to go along to."

"So you're coming too?"

"No, you're taking my Dad. He doesn't get to go to pro-ball games often."

"Ben?" Danny questioned.

"He'll like the game and it will be nice for you two to spend some time together." She suggested.

"I only met the guy yesterday." Danny pointed out.

"Do it for me?" Lindsay requested. "Dad will feel better about me living here if he knows the three of you are looking out for me."

"Okay." Danny replied.

"Thank you." Lindsay smiled as her cell phone rang. "Monroe." She answered. "Where?... Okay, I'll be right there." She hung up.

"Everything okay?"

"They think they've found the body that goes with my head in Harlem."

"Harlem?" Danny questioned.

"145th and Malcolm X is Harlem right?"

"Yes." Danny confirmed. "Why leave the body in Harlem and then cart the head half way across Manhattan to China Town?"

"If I find the person who did it I'll ask them." Lindsay suggested.

"Smart woman. I'll see you later." Danny told her.

"Good luck with your results." Lindsay added.

"You too."

Lindsay ran into Stella as she waited for the elevator.

"Where are you heading?" Stella asked.

"They think the found the body that goes with my head in Harlem."

"Harlem?" Stella questioned.

"That's what Danny said too."

"They're back?"

"And not getting their suspect here until Monday." Lindsay explained. "And the guys are taking my Dad to a ball game tonight."

"How about I ride down with you and you can tell me how that happened?" Stella suggested.

"Okay." Lindsay agreed.

TBC


	51. Chapter 51

A/N: ENGLAND MAY HAVE LOST :( and be out of the world cup but i thought I'd post this anyway.

When Danny was done for the day, he and the other guys left to pick up Ben from Lindsay's apartment.

Lindsay on the other hand finally got back and headed to the morgue and hour later.

"This body does not belong to this head or vice versa." Marty told her.

"So there are two decapitated people floating around New York?" Lindsay asked.

"It looks that way."

Lindsay's cell phone rang.

"Monroe." She answered. "Where?... I'll be there… We're also looking for another head… Okay bye."

She sighed.

"Problem?" Marty asked.

"No, we might have found you the right body. A report of decapitated body was found in the West Village. See if you can identify either of them before I get back."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Lindsay." One of the detectives who had been working on the earlier case greeted her as she ducked under the tape.

"What have we got?"

"Which body do you want to start with?" He asked.

"I was only told of one." Lindsay stated.

"Since I called you we've had a lot more calls come in." He looked at his notebook. "In addition to the head in China Town this morning, the body in Harlem this afternoon, this body now, we have reports of a heads with no bodies in Battery Park, Murry Hill, Washington Heights and Soho. We also have bodies with no heads in Tribeca and Morningside Hill."

"We're missing a body somewhere." Lindsay stated.

"We're waiting for a call to come in."

"I need to call Mac; I can't handle all these scenes by myself." Lindsay sat down her kit and pulled her cell phone of her belt and dialled his number.

"_Taylor."_

"Mac, it's Lindsay, I have a problem."

"_What kind of problem?"_

"I have bodiless heads and headless bodies turning up all over Manhattan. If the scenes are anything like the two I've processed and the scene I'm at now, they are near empty trashcans in deserted alleys which are now the cleanest alleys in the city as I haven't found one piece of evidence so far other than the body or head." When Lindsay had followed the trail to where the dog brought found the head it went to a clean alley.

"_Tell me where the other body parts are turning up." _

Lindsay looked at the map the Detective was marking the calls on and gave Mac the addresses.

"_I'll call Danny and Hawkes to go to a few of them."_

"I doubt you'll be able to reach them." Lindsay told him.

"_Why not?"_

"They went with Flack and my father to a Yankees game. If they have their cell phones I doubt they'll hear them."

"_I'll try anyway. Process the scene if you don't find anything move on to another and send the body to the morgue. Maybe we can match some of these people up with their heads."_

"Okay." Lindsay replied. "I think it's going to be a long night."

CSI NY CSI NY

It was eleven pm before Mac managed to get hold of Danny and Hawkes and get them to come and help out. Fourteen bodies and fourteen heads in total had been found in the 28 areas of Manhattan. Each scene had to be processed.

Mac called in some help, but so far they hadn't found any evidence other than the bodies in clean alleys next to empty spotless trashcans.

The medical examiners were having fun matching heads to bodies as they came in but having to wait for DNA confirmation that they matched.

There were detectives canvassing the areas looking anyone who had noticed anyone cleaning the alleys or dumping the bodies or heads.

Having processed 7 scenes in less than 24 hours, Lindsay was exhausted by the time she finally made it back to the lab.

Lindsay poured herself some coffee and rubbed her neck.

"Long day?" Adam asked.

"You have no idea." Lindsay replied.

"Fourteen heads and fourteen bodies to match them too. I was supposed to have left hours ago but I thought I'd stick around and help out."

"Okay maybe you do. How's it going?"

"We're matching blood types to start; it's going to be a while before we have all the DNA profiles to match them."

"Why would someone cut of the heads of fourteen people and dumped them in clean alleys next to empty trashcans?" Lindsay asked.

"That's for you to figure out, I'll stick to DNA." Adam told her. "The fingerprint lab is working on the prints to try and identify the bodies."

"Good." Lindsay yawned. "Sorry."

TBC


	52. Chapter 52

"It looks like Lindsay finally wiped out." Stella commented as she saw Lindsay asleep with her head on her arms. The others had all arrived back at the lab at roughly the same time.

"Working seven scenes in less than twenty-four hours will do that to you." Mac stated.

"Seven?" Danny questioned.

"She was on her third scene when she called me." Mac explained. "I think her tally was four heads and three bodies."

"I think that's enough for anyone in one day." Hawkes agreed.

"Danny, wake her up and take her home." Mac instructed. "All of you go home."

"Home?" Stella questioned.

"We're not going to be able to do much more before we get the DNA results to match heads to bodies, fingerprint searches and tox reports and those won't be in before morning given the number of bodies. You should all go home get some rest so you all don't drop like flies from exhaustion. I don't want to see any of you back here before nine am."

"Okay." They agreed.

Danny went and got Lindsay's things from her locker before he went to wake her up.

"Hey Montana." He whispered as he ran a hand over her back. "Montana."

"What?" She mumbled.

"Time to go home."

It took her a few seconds to register where she was.

"I fell asleep here again."

"Mac's thinking about charging you rent." Danny joked. "Come on let's go home."

"Case?" Lindsay asked.

"Mac's kicking us all out; we can't do anything before the morning anyway, so we're not to be back here before nine."

"Adam is…"

"Running DNA I know. Let's go."

"Okay." Lindsay was too tired to argue.

CSI NY

"How did the ball game go with Dad?" Lindsay inquired as Danny drove them back to his place.

"Not bad, I think he had a good time. It kind of went downhill when we found out that Mac had been leaving us messages all night."

Danny glanced over but Lindsay had fallen back to sleep.

When they reached his apartment Danny parked the car. He carefully unfastened Lindsay's seatbelt.

He lift her and her things out of the car, grateful for once for central locking locked the door and carried her up the flights of stairs to her apartment.

He carefully placed her on the bed. He slipped her shoes off; taking the rest of her clothes off without waking her up wouldn't be possible so he just tucked her in.

"Goodnight Montana." He kissed her forehead.

Danny got ready for bed and climbed under the covers. Lindsay instinctively rolled over so her head was resting on his chest and her arm was slung across his chest.

Danny kissed the top of her head.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay woke the next morning with a groan. She couldn't remember how she got to Danny's place or why she was still wearing her clothes or why her head was pounding.

"Ow." She laid back down on the pillow.

"You okay Montana?"

"What happened last night? How much did I drink?"

"Nothing." Danny replied.

"Then why do I have a giant hang over?"

"Lack of sleep?" Danny suggested. "You've up to three the last few nights."

"Can you either kill me or find me a truck full of aspirin?" Lindsay asked.

"Aspirin I can do." Danny replied. He climbed out of be and got some aspirin from the medicine cabinet and a glass of water. "Here."

"Thanks." Lindsay took the aspirin. "How did I get here?"

"After Mac sent us all home you fell asleep in the car so I carried you in and put you to bed."

"Mac sent us home?" Lindsay questioned.

"He said since the results of the DNA tests and tox screens would be in until this morning we should all go home and get some sleep. He doesn't want us in until nine."

"I don't remember that."

"I guess working seven scenes yesterday wore you out." Danny replied.

"Seven scenes? What?" Lindsay was confused.

"The heads without bodies. The ones that were dropped off all over Manhattan." Danny explained.

"What?" Lindsay was even more confused.

"What is the last thing you remember?" Danny asked.

"I umm called Hawkes to tell him the results while you were going to West Point, then I got a call about a severed head in China Town, I waited for the elevator. Flack came up looking for you wanted to invite you a Yankees game. I suggested you take my Dad. When I told Flack I was going to China Town he insisted on going with me. I told him I was taking my own car and we got in the elevator, that's it."

"That's it?" Danny questioned. "That was about 10.30 yesterday morning."

"What?" Lindsay asked.

"Come on, you need to take a shower and get some coffee and see if anything else comes back. If not we're going to the lab and have them run a tox screen."

"I don't need a tox screen." Lindsay stated.

"You've lost the best part of twenty hours. Unless you hit your head or developed spontaneous amnesia, you've probably been dosed with something."

TBC


	53. Chapter 53

"Sid." Danny called out as he led Lindsay into the morgue.

"We only have half the heads matched to the right bodies; we're still waiting on DNA for the others." Sid informed him.

"Yeah, that's great. Can you draw a blood sample from Lindsay we need to run a tox screen?" Danny requested.

"A tox screen?" Sid questioned. "What for?"

"It seems I can't remember anything of yesterday past about 10.30." Lindsay replied.

"Nothing?"

"I remember going down the elevator with Flack and then it's a blank."

"Not hazy?" Sid questioned.

"No. I just woke up like I have a major hangover from downing a bottle of Tequila."

"That's not good." Sid stated. "Hop up."

Lindsay sat on a stool since all the morgue tables were taken up with bodies.

"Follow my finger." Sid instructed. "Your pupils are a little dilated."

"My head is pounding, the aspirin isn't working." Lindsay stated.

"You don't remember anything at all?" Sid asked as he felt her head for any lumps or bumps which would indicate she had amnesia from a concussion.

"No." Lindsay replied.

"Do you know where she was last night?" Sid asked Danny.

"She worked seven scenes yesterday; she got back before the rest of us because we were all out processing the area each body or head was found in. She was asleep on a table, so when Mac told us all to call it a night I woke her up, told her I was taking her home."

"Did she seem coherent?" Sid asked.

"She was half asleep, she mentioned something about Adam."

"He's been bring down the DNA reports all night." Sid stated. "Perhaps you should find out if she talked to him. This will only be a slight scratch." He drew blood from her. "If the tox-report comes up negative, I want you to take her to the hospital. Amnesia is not something to mess around with."

"Okay." Danny replied.

CSI NY CSI NY

Danny left Lindsay on the couch in Mac's office while he went in search of Adam but he ran into Mac.

"What happened to not getting here before nine?" Mac asked.

"Lindsay lost 20 hours." Danny replied.

"What?"

"She woke up this morning with what she describes as a major hangover headache and doesn't remember anything since she was going to China Town yesterday with Flack."

"Nothing?"

"No. She doesn't remember actually being any scenes yesterday, how she got back to the lab or the fact that I took her home last night. None of it."

"Sounds like she was dosed with Rohypnol." Mac said.

"That's what I was thinking, but that works in about 20 minutes."

"She could have inhaled a minimal amount, which could have taken a while to kick in."

"I had Sid draw some blood they are rushing it through tox now."

"Where is she?" Mac asked.

"On your couch wishing someone would shoot her and put her out of her misery." Danny replied. "I'm trying to find Adam if he's still here."

"Why?"

"She mentioned something about him last night before we went home; I was hoping she might have talked to him so he could shed some light on it." Danny stated.

"I'll go and talk to Lindsay; you find Adam and let me know when they get her tox report back."

"They've matched about half the heads to the right bodies, and the tox reports are all still pending. They were backed up before we gave them fourteen more to do. They jumped Lindsay to the front of the queue."

"Good."

Danny finally tracked Adam as he was coming out of DNA.

"Hey Danny, we have another head and body to go together."

"That's good." Danny said. "But that wasn't why I was looking for you. Did you talk to Lindsay last night or early this morning I guess."

"Sure. She was getting coffee when I went to get some."

"How did she seem to you?"

"Tired, but it had been a long day. She was wondering why someone would cut the heads off fourteen bodies and dump the parts separately all over Manhattan. I told her that she was supposed to figure out and I'd stick to DNA."

"She didn't seem strange or out of it in anyway?" Danny asked.

"No. Why?"

"Because she doesn't remember yesterday. We think she may have got dosed with Rohypnol somewhere along the line. We're still waiting for the tox report."

"Rohypnol? Is she okay?"

"Other than a major headache and missing some time she's fine." Danny replied.

"She didn't seem like she'd taken anything." Adam told him.

"Okay thanks."

TBC


	54. Chapter 54

"And you don't remember anything after that?" Mac asked.

"No." Lindsay confirmed. "Not until I woke up this morning with a raging headache."

"You were luck you were around people who didn't want to hurt you."

"Danny wouldn't. He just thought I was exhausted so when I feel asleep in the car he carried me inside, took of my shoes and put me to bed. Since I woke up fully dressed, I'm guessing that's accurate."

"So your memories are clear after you woke up?" Mac questioned.

"Yes. It's just everything else that's blank."

"I've got her tox report back." Danny walked in. "There were minute traces of Rohypnol in her system. Now the bodies on the other hand, have fatal doses in their systems."

"That's something I guess." Lindsay said.

"What?" Danny questioned.

"Wouldn't you prefer to be dead when someone lopped your head off?" Lindsay asked.

"Good point. I spoke to Adam he said she seemed fine a little tired, it was about an hour before we got back."

"Which means she probably got dosed by something here." Mac stated. "I want the lab she was in sealed off and tested for traces of Rohypnol, and I want anyone looking at any evidence related to this case wearing masks in case this wasn't an isolated incident."

"Okay." Danny agreed.

"What about me?"

"Do you want to go to the hospital?" Mac inquired.

"No. I just want to sleep this headache off." Lindsay stated.

"I would send you home but your parents are there so…"

"Can I just stay here?" Lindsay asked. "In case I remember anything?"

"You know where the pillow and blanket are." Mac told her.

"Thank you."

"If your headache gets worse or you start experiencing any other symptoms you're going to the hospital." Mac informed her.

"You know where I am if you need anything." Danny added.

Lindsay nodded.

CSI NY CSI NY

Stella gave Danny a strange look when he stepped out of the lab which had crime tape over the door.

"What's going on?"

"Lindsay got dosed with Rohypnol last night. She doesn't remember anything after about 10.30 yesterday until she woke up this morning. Since all the vics were killed with high doses of Rohypnol before they were beheaded we're thinking that she either touched or inhaled a small amount. Since she was okay after she spoke to Adam last night and this is where we found her Mac wanted me to check it. He wants us to wear masks when testing the rest of the evidence as well."

"Okay. Is she okay?" Stella asked.

"She's got a killer headache and is a little confused but she's fine. She's asleep on Mac's couch."

"Mac's couch?" Stella questioned.

"When I found out she'd lost time I brought her here for a tox screen it's a lot quicker than going to the hospital. She needs someone to keep an eye on her it's either here or she has to explain to her parents what happened when she doesn't know."

"Good point. Do you know how it's going with the bodies?"

"They've matched up most of the heads with the bodies. We're just waiting on confirmation with the others."

"Any ID's?" Stella inquired.

"Not yet, their fingerprints don't match any in the system. Fourteen people going missing is significant but they don't match any missing persons reports either from what I can tell."

"Maybe it was a cult." Stella suggested.

"The cult of headless people?" Danny questioned.

"All the bodies and heads I saw seemed in the same stage of decomposition, cult kills themselves."

"And some decides to hack all their heads off and drop them off all over town?"

"It's possible; we've seen doomsday cults before." Stella pointed out.

"You look into that and I'll keep trying to find out how Lindsay got dosed."

"Rohypnol works fast."

"That's where my problem is."

"Did you test what she was wearing yesterday?" Stella suggested. "She could have got something on her clothes and breathed it in that way."

"She was wearing her clothes all night because I didn't want to wake her up. Wouldn't I have been dosed too?" Danny asked.

"We're scientists test before we rule things out."

"Tell Mac I'll be at my apartment picking up what she was wearing yesterday." Danny told her.

TBC


	55. Chapter 55

Lindsay woke up with a start and gasped.

"Sorry I didn't mean to wake you." Mac apologised. "I came in for a file."

"You didn't. It was a nightmare or flashback or something."

"What do you remember?" Mac inquired.

"Just random bits and pieces that don't make sense."

"It's going to be like that for a while; you probably won't remember all the details."

"I know." Lindsay sighed.

"How's the headache?"

"A little better." Lindsay admitted. "Has Danny figured out how I was dosed yet?"

"I hope you weren't wearing your favourite shirt yesterday, since he's testing the sleeves for the drug."

"I learnt a long time ago to never wear my favourite clothes anywhere near work." Lindsay took a deep breath.

"Good."

"How's the case going?" Lindsay inquired.

"We have all the heads matched to the correct bodies, but fingerprints, DNA and missing persons all come back negative."

"Danny said that the bodies and heads were placed in clean alleys next to clean trash cans. There has to be some significance in that." Lindsay stated.

"Other than taking out the trash. The bodies all have roughly the same TOD and the same cause of death so Stella was thinking mass suicide followed by someone beheading them."

"It's a theory." Lindsay agreed. "Since I can't help process the evidence in case I compromise the case, can I go back to my desk and see if can find anything similar or a significance?"

"If you feel up to it. I want you to take regular breaks and drink plenty of water to keep flushing it out your system."

"Thanks Mac."

"As soon as Danny figures out how you were dosed, both of you can help Flack with trying to ID the victims."

"If he's testing my shirt he thinks I brushed up against something that had Rohypnol on it and then when I fell asleep on my arms breathed it in."

"It's possible." Mac confirmed.

"Which would make it my fault."

"But considering how the victims were killed it could be significant." Mac stated.

Lindsay folded the blanket up and put it neatly on the couch with the pillow on top before she left.

CSI NY CSI NY

"There you are Montana; I've been looking for you." Danny said when he found her.

"I'm just doing some research. I hear you owe me a new shirt." Lindsay looked up.

"Sorry I had to test it. I'll buy a new one."

"It cost like ten bucks at Wal-Mart, it doesn't matter."

"Ten bucks?" Danny questioned.

"My first day as a CSI I was given the advice don't wear anything you don't mind getting ruined to a crime scene. Wal-Mart shirts fit well and are cheap."

"You don't get Wal-Mart in New York."

"I noticed." Lindsay sighed. "So I got it on my sleeve and dosed myself when I fell asleep."

"Looks that way."

"I don't think I brushed up against anything but then again I don't remember. Did I talk to you after you got back from West Point?" Lindsay inquired.

"Yes. You told me Ben was coming to the game with us and I told you that the Army weren't giving us Grace until Monday." Danny confirmed.

"Okay. How did it go at the game?"

"I think he had a good time. Yankees won 1 – 0."

"That's good. So since we've figured out I managed somehow to do this to myself Mac wants us to help out trying to see if we can identify the victims." Lindsay told him.

"You up to that?" Danny asked.

"I still have a headache but it's getting better. I've been looking for anything similar anywhere that could shed some light on the situation but I'm coming up blank."

"Okay, let's go and see Flack."

"I just need to run to the bathroom, I've been drinking a lot of water."

"I don't need to know the details. I'll meet you by the elevator."

"Okay." Lindsay agreed.

TBC


	56. Chapter 56

"Hey I heard what happened are you okay?" Flack asked when he saw Lindsay.

"I'll be fine." Lindsay assured him.

"Mac sent us over to help with the ID process." Danny told him.

"We've got thirty people working on it here, and people in other precincts all over Manhattan. They've canvassed every area and no-one remembers seeing or hearing anything." Flack told him. "The tip line is going wild with people saying it's a satanic ritual and that we should stomp it out. The mayor has called the Chief of Detectives who wants this solved right away."

"Sounds like your typical serial killer case."

"The FBI are on their way." Flack stated.

"The FBI?" Lindsay questioned.

"Behavioural analysis." Flack expanded. "The profilers, the mayor reached out."

"If Stella's theory of a cult mass suicide is accurate they could have killed themselves." Lindsay pointed out. "Technically you can't be charged with murder if all you did is hack 14 people's heads of after they were dead and drop them off."

"It depends on who supplied the drugs that killed them." Flack pointed out. "We're reaching out and trying to find out where they could have gotten that much but no luck so far."

"Since Lindsay can't touch the evidence so it's not compromised, we'll help anyway we can." Danny told him.

"Hey Monroe did you find out…" A female detective walked over holding some papers but stopped when Lindsay gave her a blank look with a glimmer of recognition.

"Montana, that's Jackie Dalton." Danny introduced her.

"Did I miss something?" Jackie asked.

"Lindsay got dosed with Rohypnol and doesn't remember most of yesterday including meeting you." Flack explained.

"Rohypnol? Like the vics?"

"She got some on her sleeve somehow and breathed it when she fell asleep on her arm." Danny expanded.

"Maybe it was when that guy grabbed you." Jackie suggested.

"What guy?" Danny asked.

"There was this old guy he grabbed her arm, he had gloves on and I thought it was strange give the temperature. He grabbed your arm and held while you talked to him, I wasn't sure what he said."

"Which arm?" Danny inquired.

"Left I think."

"That was the sleeve with the traces of Rohypnol on it." Danny stated.

"Do you remember what he looked like?" Flack asked.

"Wooh." Lindsay grabbed the edge of the desk.

"Montana." Danny's hand was instantly on her back. "Talk to me."

"I'm fine. Flashback."

"Take my chair." Flack got up to let her sit down.

"I think I remember him." Lindsay said. "He had brown leather gloves, a brown Columbo style trench coat, a brown hat with a brim, and a long grey beard. The rest is a little fuzzy."

"That's him." Jackie stated.

"Should I be offended that you remember a guy in a trench coat and don't remember talking to me?" Danny joked.

"I remember the whole men in uniform conversation we had with Stella." Lindsay told him.

"I'm not going to ask." Flack said.

"I'll take you back to the lab." Danny suggested to Lindsay.

"I'm fine." Lindsay insisted. "But I think driving is out for a few days. What did you want to know?"

"It doesn't matter you won't remember anyhow." Jackie replied.

"Here." Flack handed Lindsay some water.

"Thanks."

"Maybe you should go back to the lab." Flack suggested.

"And do nothing?" Lindsay asked. "My other options are the hospital or explaining to my parents what happened. You've meet them, they are pretty easy going, but they already have enough of a problem with me living in New York this would really push them over the edge. I can help out and I can answer the phone."

"There is no use arguing with her when she's made up her mind." Danny told Flack.

"Give me a minute and I'll be fine." Lindsay insisted.

"Okay." Flack conceded.

"Do you remember anything else about the man?" Lindsay asked Jackie.

"Not much, I remember what he was wearing because it was a nice night last night and it was strange. Like I said I wasn't close enough to hear what he said to you."

"Detective Monroe, this was just left for you." An officer can over holding an envelope.

TBC


	57. Chapter 57

"Has anyone else touched that?" Lindsay inquired.

"I don't think so." He replied.

Lindsay grabbed a file from Flack's desk took the contents out and handed it to him before laying it open on the desk.

"Drop it on there." Lindsay instructed. He did as she requested. "Danny do you have…"

Danny held out a pair of gloves in front of her. Lindsay slipped them on.

"Actually we should do this somewhere else, is the interrogation room free?" Lindsay asked closing the folder.

"Should be." Flack replied.

"What's the big deal?" Jackie inquired.

"I don't work here." Lindsay stated.

"What?"

"The only place in New York she's ever worked for is the crime lab, so why is mail for her coming here?" Danny asked. "We're going to need to borrow these." Danny stole the letter opener and some pencils from Flack's desk. "Do you have evidence bags?"

Flack opened his desk drawer and pulled out two letter size evidence bags.

"Thanks."

Jackie looked at the retreating detectives.

"They're criminalists it's what they do." Flack shrugged.

CSI NY

"You should let me do this." Danny set the items on the table as Lindsay sat the file down.

"Okay." Lindsay went and sat on the other side of the table.

Danny pulled on a second pair of gloves. Using a pencil to hold down the envelope he used the letter opener to slice the envelope open. He carefully pulled the single sheet of paper out. Lindsay held open one of the evidence bags so Danny could drop the envelope inside. She sealed the bag.

Danny used the pencils to open out the letter.

"It's from the killer." Danny said after skimming it.

"Put it in the evidence bag so I can take a look." Lindsay told him.

Danny slipped the letter into the bag.

"Great." Lindsay said. "I have a serial killer as a fan."

"We'll make a couple of copies and take this back to the lab." Danny squeezed her hand.

"Okay."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Mac." Danny stood in the doorway.

"I thought you and Lindsay were trying to help identify the victims."

"The killer sent Lindsay a note with a list of names on it. Flack's pulling photos from the DMV for comparison."

"He sent Lindsay a note?" Mac questioned.

"He sent it to the precinct, he apparently saw her when she went to first severed head in China Town and decided that she didn't look like a 'bumbling idiot'. He's also responsible for her getting dosed."

"Take the not to QD and I'll grabbed Stella and Hawkes."

"Okay."

"Where's Lindsay?" Mac asked.

"Getting some aspirin from her desk. Her headache got worse."

"Is she okay other than that?"

"She had a flash back of a guy who grabbed her arm at a scene yesterday and was who put the Rohypnol on her sleeve. Old guy with a long grey beard, brown leather gloves, a brown trench coat and a brown hat which was confirmed by one of the detectives who were with her at the time."

"She remembered that?"

"Flashback. She's also worried about her parents, but it seems this guy only saw her at the scene and she came home with me last night so they should be safe."

"When are they leaving?"

"Their flight is tomorrow at 6."

"If she's concerned I'll arrange for someone to stay with them." Mac offered.

"I'm sure she would appreciate that." Danny replied. "I'll see you in QD."

Mac went and retrieved Stella and Hawkes.

TBC

A/N: It's been quiet on feedback the last few days :(


	58. Chapter 58

"She got a note from the killer?" Hawkes questioned as they all stood in QD.

"Hand delivered to NYPD by persons unknown. We have the envelope it was delivered in, elimination prints from the uniform that brought it to her. The file folder she had him drop it into and the letter." Danny confirmed.

"File folder?" Hawkes asked.

"Lindsay doesn't work at NYPD she works here, why would mail for her get sent there?" Stella pointed out.

"Good point."

"She knew that which is why she didn't touch the envelope." Danny stated.

"You know it's not polite to talk about a person like they're not there when they are in the room." Lindsay said from behind them.

"Sorry." Danny apologised.

"How are you feeling?" Stella asked.

"I'll be fine. Did Danny tell you that the Mayor has the FBI profilers on their way here?"

"No." Stella replied.

"Flack mentioned it." Danny shrugged. "I hadn't gotten around to bringing it up yet."

"Isn't it a little soon to bring in the big guns?" Hawkes asked.

"It's an election year, 14 dead potential voters." Danny stated.

"How about we concentrate on the note and maybe we can solve this before they get here?" Mac suggested.

"Hopefully they won't storm the lab again." Stella said optimistically.

"They stormed the lab?" Lindsay questioned.

"A few years ago they decided they were taking over a case and stormed the lab to get the evidence we'd collected, it didn't matter that we were in the middle of processing it at the time." Stella explained. "Or that it would have been quicker to let us finish processing it rather than ship it back to their lab in Quantico."

"The note." Danny brought it up on the screen.

_**Detective Lindsay,**_

**_How is the memory? Did you like my little surprise? People can be so forgetful, but I gave you a little helping hand and I doubt you even remember meeting me. _**

**_I saw you in China Town, looking at that head. You were the only one who didn't look like a bumbling idiot. Did you like the dog I gave it to? It seemed appropriate. _**

**_By now you've found all of my dearly departed, they were such easy targets, they were ready to believe anything that I said, that I was their Messiah. They didn't question when I gave them the drugs and they passed out dead the floor. The sounds of their heads coming off one by one was intoxicating, I know why the French liked their guillotines so much. _**

**_I bet you're wondering about the trash cans, well I'll let you wonder, I can't go sharing every little secret with you can I?_**

_**You can try and find me but I will be long gone by the time you even get close. **_

**_So my dearest Lindsay I must depart for pastures new as they might say. Good luck with your quest and enough the thought of know you were so close but will never catch me. _**

_**But in the spirit of good sportsmanship I will give you the names of dead.**_

_**X**_

List below were the names of the victims which Flack was checking out.

"Lindsay." Hawkes said watching her. "Look at me for a second."

Lindsay slowly turned to face him.

"Follow my finger." He instructed. "Do you feel dizzy?"

"Slightly." Lindsay admitted.

Hawkes felt her forehead with the back of his hand.

"You have a slight fever too and your pupils are dilated. Hold out your hands."

Lindsay's hands were shaking slightly.

"You need to go to the hospital; you're having a reaction to the drugs."

"Wouldn't she have had one earlier?" Danny asked.

"You can get delayed reactions." Hawkes stated. "And could have been masked by the headache and the amnesia."

"I'll be fine." Lindsay insisted.

"Go to the hospital." Mac instructed. "Let them check you over if it's nothing then you're covered."

"Mac?" Danny started.

"Danny, Hawkes you go with her. Let us know as soon as you know anything and take the tox report from earlier with you."

"You need to sign for these, chain of custody and all." Danny pointed out.

"We've got it covered." Stella assured him.

"Come on Montana, let's find you a doctor." He guided her out.

"My insurance card is in my wallet in my locker." Lindsay pointed out.

"Hawkes, take her to the car I'll get her bag."

TBC


	59. Chapter 59

It took a bit of sweet talking from Hawkes to get Lindsay through the emergency room doors immediately.

"Detective Monroe we meet again." Dr Huntsburg said.

"Trust me I'd rather not be here." Lindsay stated.

"You had a taller gentleman with you last time." Dr Huntsburg recalled.

"He's busy." Lindsay replied. "This is Detective Danny Messer and this is Dr Sheldon Hawkes."

"Detective, Dr Hawkes. What kind of doctor?"

"Pathologist." Hawkes replied.

"So what seems to be the problem today?"

"She got dosed with Rohypnol." Danny informed him.

"Were you attacked?" Huntsburg inquired.

"No. Someone put traces of it my sleeve and I breathed it in when I feel asleep on my arm." Lindsay explained.

"She woke up with a major headache and having lost 20 hours." Danny explained.

"Why didn't you bring her in right away?" Huntsburg asked.

"We didn't know what it was, so we ran a tox-screen at the lab." Danny handed him the results. "It was only limited trace amounts; she's had someone watching her all day."

"But she's started getting dizzy, she has hand tremors, flashbacks, her pulse is alternating between racing and thready, her pupils are dilated and she has a slight fever in addition to the headache."

"Sounds like typical effects of Rohypnol although the fever does concern me. I'm going to need to examine her, run a few tests and get our own tox report. So if you gentlemen would like to wait outside."

"Danny my parents?"

"Mac's sending someone to keep an eye on them and I won't call them unless it's necessary." He kissed her forehead.

"Thanks."

"We'll be right outside." He squeezed her hand before he and Hawkes left.

"I thought the other guy was your boyfriend." Huntsburg said.

"No Flack is a homicide detective we work with, who Danny asked to give me a ride to the hospital because he had to start work." Lindsay explained.

"I'm going to do an exam we'll run some tests hook you up to a monitor and then see we can get you something for your headache."

"I took some aspirin." Lindsay told him. "But it didn't work."

"We have something stronger that won't cause a drug reaction."

"Good."

CSI NY CSI NY

"I want to nail this guy." Danny said he sank down into a chair.

"You can't beat up every guy who hurts your girlfriend." Hawkes sat down next to him.

"I can I nail him for killing 14 people and then dosing her and then sending her a note to gloat about it?"

"That would be more acceptable."

"It's our fault she was there in the first place." Danny leant back against the wall.

"How do you figure that out?"

"If she hadn't helped us out with the fingerprints Mac would have never made her stay at the lab and finish analysing our evidence, which means she wouldn't have gone out on the first head."

"Do you know why she came by the lab after dinner with her parents?" Hawkes asked.

"She said she wasn't tired."

"She came to the lab because there is a guy in your building that gives her the creeps and she didn't want to be there alone so she came in to do some paperwork and then stuck around to help us so you'd get out of there quicker."

"A guy in my building gives her the creeps?" Danny questioned.

"That's what she said."

"Why didn't she mention something?"

"She's a cop." Hawkes suggested. "Then again what do I know? But I do know she doesn't blame you for this. Just like she didn't blame you when she broke her foot."

"Then why do I feel guilty?"

"You were raised Catholic, you feel guilty about everything." Hawkes replied.

"A very lapsed Catholic." Danny pointed out. "Not that it did me much good."

"You ended up on the right side of the law that's no mean feat." Hawkes paused. "She's good for you."

"Huh?" Danny looked at him.

"Lindsay, she's good for you."

"She's not as straight laced as she makes out." Danny smiled. "And she can be as confusing as hell sometimes."

"I'll bet." Hawkes agreed, grateful he'd been able to distract Danny even for a few minutes.

TBC


	60. Chapter 60

Dr Huntsburg came back with Lindsay's test results about an hour later.

"So what's the verdict doc?" Danny inquired.

"We're going to admit you overnight for observation." Huntsburg informed Lindsay. "It's just precautionary."

"Okay." Lindsay agreed.

"May I?" Hawkes asked. Huntsburg handed him Lindsay's chart.

"We'll set you up with an IV. When was the last time you ate?"

"I know I had breakfast yesterday morning after that who knows?"

"You haven't had anything today?" He questioned.

"We kind of skipped breakfast when we figured out she had lost her memory." Danny admitted.

"We'll get you something to eat while you're waiting to be taken upstairs."

"As long as it isn't spiders, I'm not really in the mood."

"Spiders?" Huntsburg asked.

"Private joke." Danny replied not really wanting to explain it more.

"I can assure you we don't service insects or arachnoids, the food might not be very good but we've aim for a slightly higher standard."

"Thank you."

"I'll see you later." Huntsburg left them alone.

"Can you give us a minute?" Lindsay requested.

"I'll go and call Mac and let him know the situation." Hawkes stated.

"Thanks."

Danny ran his thumb over the back of Lindsay's hand.

"I'm going to have to keep a closer eye on you Montana." He told her.

"While you're doing that could you call my parents?" Lindsay asked.

"Mac has a car parked outside your apartment building. You're parents are there."

"Can you explain to them what happened without them demanding I go back to Montana?"

"I think I can handle that."

"Then I need you to help me convince them to go and see Becky today before they go back home."

"I can probably handle that too. "

"Thanks Danny."

Danny kissed her.

"I'll be right back."

Hawkes returned first.

"I filled Mac in, I have to head back but Mac says Danny can stay for a while." Hawkes explained.

"I'll send him back as soon as he helps me convince my parents to leave New York and go and see Becky."

"I'll let Mac know."

"Does my chart say anything interesting?" Lindsay inquired.

"Your white count is up slightly but nothing to be concerned about it's probably just a response to the fever. You still have a minute trace of the drug in your system but it has a short half life so it should be gone by tonight. You'll be back to normal in a couple days."

"That's good because I'm supposed to be going to Danny's father's birthday party." Lindsay sighed.

"You need anything?" Hawkes asked.

"If you do find this guy make sure Danny doesn't kill him." Lindsay requested.

"I think I can handle that. Feel better soon." He patted her leg.

"Thanks." Lindsay leant back against the pillows as he left.

CSI NY CSI NY

"How's Lindsay doing?" Stella inquired.

"I'm guessing she's trying to convince her parents that New York is a safe place but she wants them to leave about now." Hawkes replied. "I checked her test results she'll be fine and hopefully get a decent nights sleep."

"Good."

"How's it going here?" Hawkes inquired.

"The paper is a type that is available everywhere, no watermark, as is the envelope. The ink is standard ballpoint pen ink. Not prints, no DNA, no nothing."

"This guy is really a ghost." Hawkes stated.

"The best we have to go on is the description Lindsay had in a flash back, which was confirmed by Jackie. Brown gloves, hat and coat with a long grey beard."

"Sounds like a guy who thinks he's God crossed with a flasher who decided to turn into a serial killer."

"Why don't you run that by the FBI?" Stella suggested. "Flack just called they are on their way over."

TBC


	61. Chapter 61

The FBI profilers examined all the photographs from all the scenes. They went to the morgue to observe the bodies, looked over the toxicology and DNA reports, observed the collection of trash cans and read the note.

"We're going to need to talk to Detective Monroe." Agent Fitzpatrick announced.

"She's in the hospital." A voice announced from the doorway.

"This Danny Messer, Danny this is Agent Fitzpatrick and Agent Kenton. Stella and Hawkes took the rest of their team to look at some of the locations." Mac explained. "How's Lindsay?"

"We managed convince her parents this was an accident and that it would be a good idea if they went to go and visit Becky. They're packing now, I said I'd go back in an hour and drive them to the airport, the car is staying outside her apartment until then."

"Good." Mac agreed.

"We still need to talk to her Detective."

"The doctor gave her something to help her sleep." Danny stated. "It won't be for a few hours."

"You haven't taken a statement."

"I don't think 'I don't remember anything after ten thirty yesterday and when I woke up this morning' is really that helpful. Then she had a flashback this afternoon but gloves, a hat, a trench coat and a grey beard are really helpful but a defence lawyer will tear that to pieces in less than a minute. But she did write it all down and signed it. She says she'll type up an official copy tomorrow because I have lousy typing skills."

Mac's cell phone rang.

" Taylor… I'll have someone over there….Bye." He hung up. "Gentlemen we've shown you everything we have now we have other cases."

"We need the note." Fitzpatrick stated.

"You can keep the copy we provided you with but we have our graphologist coming to take a look at it and she'll need the original. Danny can see you out."

"You're kicking us out?" Fitzpatrick questioned.

"We have processed all the evidence and found nothing that will help you solve this case it is down to detective work which leaves it up to NYPD." Mac stated. "You have copies of everything we have. We'll let you know the results of the graphologist's findings but right now we have work to do. So Danny." Mac prompted.

"Right this way gentlemen." Danny stepped back to let them out.

CSI NY CSI NY

"So Mac threw the FBI out?" Hawkes asked Stella as they began process their new scene.

"Mac's not a big fan of the FBI." Stella shrugged. "Besides unfortunately we've done everything we can in this case. We've process all the evidence and we don't have anything to go on, if Flack and friends can find us the location of where they were killed we can process it and hopefully find something to get this guy but at this point there isn't much more we can do other than keep an eye on Lindsay."

"Having a serial killer write her a note is a little Silence of the Lambs for me." Hawkes admitted.

"Lindsay will be okay. She's got Danny to fall back on."

"You know you can tell that he loves by the way he talks about her."

"Who would have thought a year ago?" Stella commented. "But she's good for him."

"That's what I told him."

CSI NY CSI NY

When Lindsay woke up there were two men in dark suits she didn't recognise, but on the positive side her headache was almost gone.

"Who exactly are you and why are you in my room?" Lindsay inquired.

"Special Agents Cabot and Heggan with the BAU of the FBI." Cabot introduced them.

"I can't tell you anything." Lindsay sat herself up.

"Just tell us what you remember." Heggan stated.

"The night before my boyfriend and I had dinner with my parents but he got called away on a work matter. Since my parents are visiting and have taken over my apartment, I'm staying at his place. Since he wasn't there and one of the men in his apartment building gives me the creeps, I went back to work after dinner and caught up on my paperwork and then helped Detective Messer and Dr Hawkes out by running the 103 prints they got from their scene all of which apart from two belong to their victim. I left around 3.30. I was back by 8, since Detective Messer and Dr Hawkes had to drive out to West Point to interview their suspect Detective Taylor asked me to finish processing the last of their evidence in the case. I called them with their results. Since Detectives Taylor and Bonasera were at another scene. I took the call when a severed head was found by a dog in China Town. I was waiting for the elevator when Detective Flack came by he was looking for Detective Messer, I explained to him where he had gone. We talked for a few minutes, he asked where I was going, I told him. He insisted on coming with me because there was something going on in China Town, I told him I was taking my own car we got in the elevator and I don't remember anything after that."

"Nothing?"

"No. I woke up this morning with a raging headache having lost about twenty hours. At the lab Dr Hammerback took a blood sample which they ran a toxicology report on which showed traces of Rohypnol. I slept on Detective Taylor's couch while Detective Messer tried to figure out how I'd been dosed. Once he'd done that I went to my office and did a little research trying to find a link between clean alleys, Rohypnol, trash cans and decapitated bodies. Since I couldn't find anything, Detective Messer and I went over to see if we could help anymore with IDing the victims. The note was delivered there which Detective Messer opened and we put it into evidence bags before we read it. Back at the lab I was feeling worse so Dr Hawkes recommended that I come to the hospital. I've been here ever since."

"There was something about a flash back." One of them prompted.

"A two second flash of brown leather gloves, a brown trench coat, a brown hat and a grey beard. It's not coherent and I don't remember anything else."

TBC


	62. Chapter 62

"Hey Montana." Danny said as he entered her room bringing flowers.

"What did you do?" Lindsay inquired.

"What makes you think I did anything?" Danny asked.

"You've only ever given me flowers twice." Lindsay pointed out.

"You're in hospital flowers are obligatory as are grapes. You're awfully suspicious today."

"The FBI has that effect on me." Lindsay shrugged. "And they're beautiful."

"The FBI were here?"

"When I woke up. You'd think I'd killed those people the way they interrogated me."

"I'd already given them your statement and told them you couldn't remember anything before Mac threw them out."

"Mac threw them out?" Lindsay questioned.

"He told them we'd done all we could with the evidence and had been accommodating but there were unfortunately other cases we had to investigate and invited them to leave."

"I wish I'd been there to see that."

"How are you feeling anyway?"

"Better. Yesterday is still a blank but my headache has gone."

"That's great news."

Lindsay shuffled over so he could sit on the side of the bed next to her.

"Did my parents get away okay?" Lindsay asked.

"I talked to the airline and explained the situation and they were very accommodating. Your mother called me to let me know they landed safely."

"Becky is going to love me for this."

"She'll understand." Danny assured her.

"Did you find anything else out?"

"The ID's matched other than that no. Mac says to tell you to take a few days off; he'll have a car parked out your apartment."

"No." Lindsay stated.

"No?" Danny questioned.

"It's a waste of resources, if he won't let me out into the field I can stay in the lab but I'm not sitting at home doing nothing. I can help out. The doctors have no problems with me going to back to work tomorrow afternoon."

"You already asked." Danny realised.

"Of course."

"You know you drive me crazy sometimes Montana." He kissed the top of her head.

"Tenacity is a good trait."

"I'll talk to Mac." Danny assured her.

"I don't suppose you brought anything edible did you? I don't like hospital food."

"Funny you should mention that." Danny said.

"Funny how?"

"Anyone order pizza?" Stella and Hawkes appeared in the doorway.

"That kind of funny." Danny replied.

"Hey guys pizza sounds great."

"How are you feeling?" Hawkes inquired he'd already checked her chart.

"Better." Lindsay replied as her stomach grumbled.

"I'd say we're here at the right time." Stella put the boxes on the over bed table.

"That smells great."

"I'll go and grab another chair." Danny hopped off the bed and went to talk to the nurses about another chair.

"I looked at your chart. Apart from slight rise in your blood pressure at one point you're doing pretty well."

"That would be after the FBI got here and started interrogating me." Lindsay replied.

"How much more can you tell them that you can't remember yesterday?" Hawkes inquired.

"They seem to think I'm faking it."

"I've seen your test results you definitely aren't faking it."

"We know that but this is the FBI." Lindsay moved the pillows so she was more comfortable.

"We got pepperoni and veggi-lovers." Stella stated as she opened the box. "Any preference?"

"Both." Lindsay replied.

"Has she talked you in to helping convince Mac to let her come back to work tomorrow yet?" Danny asked as he carried in another chair.

"Not yet." Lindsay cutting in. "I was working up to it."

"If you want to come in I'll talk to Mac, but you'll have to stay at the lab." Stella warned.

"I don't mind that." Lindsay stated.

TBC


	63. Chapter 63

"Sounds like you're having a party in here." Lindsay's doctor entered the room.

"They decided I couldn't live on hospital food." Lindsay replied.

"I see that."

"You remember Danny from earlier; this is Stella Bonasera and Sheldon Hawkes." Lindsay made introductions. "This is Dr Preston."

They exchanged brief greetings.

"I've left instructions for the nurses to give you something if your headache returns, but everything looks good, get a good nights sleep and if your blood results remain the same in the morning you can leave. Although I'd recommend against you driving for a few days."

"We've got that covered." Danny assured him.

"Good. Goodnight." Dr Preston left. "Helen." He said walking over to the nurses station.

"Yes Doctor Preston?"

"Detective Messer can stay the night if he wants. Detective Monroe is supposed to have a police guard while she's here. If he leaves there will be another officer outside her room all night."

"Is there a problem?" Helen asked.

"It was something to do with all those decapitation murders. I'm not sure of the details but she gets police protection." He replied.

"Yes doctor."

"You have the orders if she needs any pain killers but I think she'll be fine."

"Yes doctor." Helen replied.

CSI NY

"We should get going." Stella said.

"I guess that means we'll see at the lab tomorrow." Hawkes said. "Get a good nights sleep. Danny do you need a ride?"

"I'm going to stick around for a while."

"Okay." Hawkes agreed.

"Night." Stella grabbed up the pizza boxes.

"Bye guys and thanks for dropping by." Lindsay added.

Lindsay waited for them to leave.

"So you're sticking around?" She asked.

"I told you you get police protection, you've had it all day since I left. There was an officer down the hall. Since you're worried about wasting resources you get me."

"What if I don't want you?" Lindsay inquired.

"I call dispatch and have some come over and sit outside." Danny replied.

"If you're going to sit on the bed take your shoes off." Lindsay told him and switched the TV on. She flicked the channels until she found a ball game.

Danny climbed back on the bed next her, they shuffled until they were both comfortable and watched the end of the game before they both fell asleep.

CSI NY CSI NY

A nurse coming into the room and the sound of the meal trolley woke Lindsay and Danny the next morning.

"Sorry." The nurse apologised. "But we need to take another blood sample."

"Sure." Lindsay held out her arm.

"I'm going to take a leak." Danny disentangled himself.

"Please tell me you're not squeamish, we see a lot worse at work. I mean we've the ME's draw fluid from eyeballs."

"I just have little problem with people sticking needles into living people." Danny headed for the bathroom.

"We ordered him a breakfast tray too." The nurse informed Lindsay.

"Thank you and thank you for not kicking him out."

"We were informed he was your police protection." The nurse replied.

"Something like that." Lindsay sighed.

"What did you do to need police protection?"

"My job." Lindsay replied. "The rest of is a long story that I don't actually remember."

"Drug induced amnesia can be hard to deal with." The nurse agreed. "Someone may suggest you see a counsellor."

"Hey as long as the FBI don't suggest I get hypnotised to try and remember I should be okay. Fortunately I was around people I trusted after I got dosed so nothing happened to me."

"That's fortunate. They'll bring breakfast in in a few minutes; the results will take a few hours so the doctor will be in to see you around ten then after that you should be able to go."

"Thank you." Lindsay replied.

"All part of the service."

TBC

A/N: Get it up to 510 reviews and I'll post another chapter today.


	64. Chapter 64

A/N: You made it great job, let's have some more reviews for this part.

Danny was being vigilant when he walked Lindsay into the lab.

"You know this is going to get annoying." Lindsay commented.

"Annoyed is better than dead." Danny pointed out. "You should go and see Mac now; Stella will have cleared you being here with him by now."

"No escort?" Lindsay inquired.

"I think you can handle the lab by yourself."

Lindsay walked to Mac's office.

He was on the phone but he beckoned her inside.

"Okay thank you." Mac hung up. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine thank you." Lindsay replied. "There are no traces of Rohypnol left in my system and I have a note from the doctor clearing me to work. Although he advises against driving for a few days."

"If you want to come to work there are a few rules you'll need to stick to. You'll have to stay in the lab, if you need to leave even if it's down to the morgue you need to take someone with you. Especially if you leave for the night, if Danny isn't with you you get a PD escort."

"Do I get to the bathroom on my own?" Lindsay inquired.

"Lindsay." Mac responded in a tone that indicated he didn't appreciate her sarcasm.

"I'm sorry but this seems a little over the top."

"The man killed 14 people and beheaded them and then dosed you with Rohypnol and sent you a note to gloat about it. He may have left town but for now we need to be cautious and that means you get protection."

"Okay." Lindsay conceded. "Did they find anything else out?"

"We have confirmed ID's all the notification to families has been made. But as to who this guy is the FBI have a profile, but given that there are 8 million people living in the five boroughs that's a lot of potential suspects."

"I know."

"They circulated the description of the man in the coat in the area where Janet remembers him but nothing has come up yet. We'll let you if anything else comes up but for now why don't you go and find Stella she could use some help."

"Okay."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay got up from her couch when there was a knock on her door.

"I'll get it." Danny tried to cut her off.

"I don't think the Chinese delivery guy is out to kill me." Lindsay pulled open the door. "Hey Wei how are you parents?"

"Just fine Detective." He handed her her order. Lindsay handed him some money.

"How's is Jia? It must be getting close."

"Next week hopefully."

"Tell her good luck from me." Lindsay told him.

"I will. Have a nice evening."

"You too." Lindsay closed the door.

"You make small talk with the Chinese delivery guy?" Danny asked.

"I used to go there a lot. Wei's parents are great, they always give me extra spring rolls."

"Who is Jia?"

"Wei's sister. She's having her baby next week." Lindsay explained. "Her husband is in Iraq. Do you want to grab some plates?"

Danny grabbed the plates and a couple of sodas.

"You know you're a strange woman."

"And I love you too." Lindsay responded.

"I'm not saying it's a bad thing."

"Good."

"Maybe I should shut up before I dig myself a hole." Danny suggested.

"Before you are silent, what are you getting your father for his birthday?"

"What?" Danny asked.

"We were invited to his birthday party, that usually entails taking a gift of some sort." Lindsay pointed out.

"Things have been a little busy and I haven't got around to it."

"I would offer to go shopping for you but I'm not allowed out in public."

"Montana you know that it's for your own protection."

"Amazon will deliver by Tuesday hopefully." Lindsay sighed.

"Just buy him some beer he'll be fine."

"We'll look after dinner." Lindsay informed him.

TBC


	65. Chapter 65

"Here you go Lindsay." Stella handed her a bag.

"Thank you." Lindsay took it from her.

"Your change." She set it on the table.

"It comes to something when you have to have some else go out and by your gift wrap for you." Lindsay sighed.

"Hopefully it won't be for much longer." Stella tried to sound optimistic.

"Honestly do you think this guy is coming after me?" Lindsay inquired.

"No, I think he's long gone by now."

"Do you think you can convince Mac and Danny of that? I'm starting to get cabin fever."

"You get to go Danny's father's birthday party tonight." Stella pointed out.

"It beats Danny's objection to me opening my front door."

"They are only doing it because they want to make sure nothing happens to you."

"Apart from driving me crazy." Lindsay sighed.

"In a couple weeks they'll ease up."

"This guy isn't going to do this just once, he's going to go somewhere else charm people and do this again." Lindsay stated.

"I know, the FBI thinks so to."

"I'd better get the gift wrapped before my break is over."

"You know you should get Danny to wrap it." Stella suggested.

"I've seen Danny try to wrap things before it's not pretty."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey Mac." Stella caught up with him.

"Stella."

"Is there any way you can ease up slightly on Lindsay?" Stella asked.

"Is there a problem?" Mac inquired.

"She's getting cabin fever. She comes to work stays stuck in the lab then Danny marches her and keeps her in her apartment. Tonight she actually gets to go out for once and that's only because it's Danny's father's birthday party."

"I never said couldn't go out I just told her she had to take someone with her."

"Exactly she doesn't want to take anyone else away from doing their job just because she wants to go to lunch." Stella pointed out.

"It's for her own protection."

"Mac, not even the FBI believes he's still in town. It's been four days since he sent her the note."

"She still gets protection on the off chance this lunatic is still around."

"I don't think the FBI used the word lunatic." Stella reminded him.

"We'll re-evaluate the situation in a week but for now this is how it's got to be."

"Could you at least ease up about letting her go to the morgue, it's in this building?"

"Fine as long as she lets someone know she's headed down there."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey Danny have you seen Lindsay?" Hawkes asked walking into Danny and Lindsay's office.

"Not for a few hours. Why?"

"I've been looking for her and I can't find her anywhere."

Danny pulled his cell phone off his belt and hit speed dial.

"_Monroe."_ Lindsay answered.

"Hey Montana. Where are you?"

"_On the roof."_

"The roof?" Danny questioned.

"_I'm getting some fresh air since I can't go outside."_

"Stay where you are." Danny told her before he hung up.

When Danny and Hawkes made it up to the roof Lindsay was sat there talking to Marty.

"Hey Montana. You're not supposed to leave." Danny pointed out.

"Mac changed it so I was allowed in the building as long as someone knows where I am going. He also I had to have someone with me, you count as someone right Marty?"

"Last time I checked." Marty agreed.

"I think Mac had a cop in mind." Danny pointed.

"I'm a cop and I can shoot just fine if necessary. There was a problem in DNA they had to re-run your samples so it will be another hour before you can have the results." Lindsay informed Hawkes. "Since I didn't have much else to do and Marty was taking a break we came up here to get some air."

TBC


	66. Chapter 66

Lindsay handed Danny the gift to carry, she'd had it delivered to the lab because she knew it was too big for her mail slot and she didn't want to run around having to collect parcels, when they left the lab.

Danny took the first shower when they got back and left Lindsay to do whatever it was that women did in the bathroom while he sat on the couch.

"Come on Montana we need to leave soon."

"Danny do you really want me to go in my underwear?"

"How about we just stay here and see where that idea takes us?" Danny suggested.

"We're going; I need to get out for the night and I need five more minutes."

"Okay okay."

Danny was pacing slightly when Lindsay appeared in the bedroom doorway.

"Wow!" Danny stopped and looked at her.

"You think it's okay for meeting the rest of your family?" Lindsay asked.

She was wearing a white dress covered in large red roses with a red sweater, her hair curling at her shoulders. She had on cute red kitten healed shoes, her foot still not quite up to anything higher.

"You look gorgeous."

Lindsay blushed.

"We should get going." Lindsay suggested.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay?" Danny asked.

"I'm going with or without you."

"Let's go." He grabbed the gift from the table.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Yo NYPD open up." Danny banged on the door of his parents place.

"Danny." Lindsay sighed.

Carrie opened the door.

"You have to stop doing that." Carrie informed Danny. "Hey Lindsay, you look great."

"Thanks, so do you." Lindsay gave her a hug.

"Come on in."

"No hug for me?" Danny asked.

"Maybe if you stop scaring half the guests." Carrie told him.

"Hey Lindsay." Danny's father came to see who it was.

"Hey Mr Messer happy birthday." She gave him a hug.

"I've told you before to call me Howie. You look great."

"Thank you."

"Hey Dad happy birthday." Danny said. "This is for you." Danny handed him the beautifully wrapped gift.

"Thank you son. Lindsay, just ignore my nephews."

"Okay." Lindsay smiled.

"Food and drinks are in there." Carrie told them. "Help yourself."

"Thank you."

"Dad's right about my cousins." Danny told her.

"Danny I can handle your cousins."

"Some of them look like the mob guys you see on TV." Danny pointed out.

"I've laid a 400lb trucker out on the floor before; I think I can handle your cousins."

"A 400lb trucker?"

"Vice sting."

"You worked vice?" Danny questioned.

"For five days." Lindsay replied.

"Do I want to know what you were doing?"

"No." Lindsay answered. "Let's grab something to eat and then you can introduce me to people."

"Are you sure you want to talk to them? Half my family have a criminal record."

"So? As long as you don't want me to arrest them because I left my handcuffs at home I don't really care, they are your family."

"You're really something Montana." Danny told her.

"I know, but it's nice to hear every now and again."

"Modest too. Stay away from Aunt Liliana's guacamole, she puts too much garlic in it, so unless you want to be eating breath mints by the ton for a week."

"Got it. You should try my aunt's tamales; I'm the only one who can eat them without having to reach for a gallon of water."

TBC


	67. Chapter 67

Lindsay was stood watching Danny joking around with his family from the other side of the room.

"You must be a Lindsay." A woman came up to her.

"Lindsay Monroe." Lindsay held out her hand.

"Gina Moretti, I'm Danny's aunt's sister."

"Nice to meet you."

"Enjoying the party?" Gina inquired. "These Italian family get-togethers came be a little overwhelming at first."

"This is nothing, when I was growing up in the summer months we used to have big get-togethers with all the other ranches in the area once a month, there were a hundred people there at least. It was great fun."

"Where exactly are you from?" Gina asked.

"Just outside Bozeman, Montana." Lindsay replied.

"Country girl, how do you like the city?"

"It grows on you." Lindsay admitted. "But as much as Danny tries to convince me it will never beat back home."

"Hey Gina." A slight drunken man came over.

"Lindsay this is Vinnie Danny's cousin. Vinnie this is Lindsay." Gina made introductions.

"It's nice to meet you." Lindsay said.

"You too darling."

"Would you mind taking your hand off my butt?" Lindsay requested politely.

"What?"

"Take your hand off my butt." Lindsay repeated.

"You mean this hand." He pinched her butt.

"Please don't do that."

"What are you going to stop me?" Vinnie asked.

"Would you hold this?" Lindsay handed Gina her glass.

Half a second later Lindsay had Vinnie pinned against the wall his arm behind his back and his legs spread.

"I'm a cop and that could be considered assault. But this is a nice party and I'm not going to cause a scene by having some other cops come over in their nice shiny patrol car with the lights flashing. So I'm going to let you go, and you're going to get some coffee because I think you've had too much to drink and you're going to keep your hands to yourself and we'll forget all about this. Okay?"

He didn't say anything.

"Okay?" She repeated.

"Okay." Vinnie agreed.

Lindsay released him.

"Thank you." She took her glass back as Vinnie disappeared.

"Everything okay over here?" Danny came over.

"Gina and I were just getting acquainted." Lindsay replied.

"And Vinnie?"

"Needs to learn to keep his hands to himself, but we worked it out." She paused. "Could you get me some more orange juice?" She handed him her glass.

"Sure."

"I'm sorry about Vinnie." Carrie came over when Danny had gone.

"It's okay I can handle myself despite what Mac and Danny think."

"What?" Carrie asked.

"The only reason I'm allowed to be here is because Danny is. He is technically my police protection."

"Police protection?" Carrie repeated. "Why do you need police protection?"

"Did you see on the news about those decapitated bodies over the weekend?" Lindsay asked.

"Of course." Gina replied.

"The person responsible managed to dose me with Rohypnol so I lost about twenty hours and end up in hospital overnight. Mac and Danny think I need police protection for at least while, so I'm pretty much under house arrest at the moment. I get to go to work and stay in the lab and then go home and stay in my apartment."

"How do they know it was him?" Gina asked.

"I can't say." Lindsay replied. The note that they had received and the fact that Lindsay was dosed was actually information that NYPD was keeping from the press. Especially the note.

"Are you okay?" Carrie inquired.

"Apart from a little cabin fever and a lost day I'm fine." Lindsay replied.

"How awful!" Gina stated.

"It's a hazard of the job."

TBC


	68. Chapter 68

A/N: For achingankle : Gina is Howie's brothers wife's sister. Which technically makes Gina's sister Danny's aunt but not Gina.

"She had his arm behind his back and had him pinned up against a wall." Danny told Hawkes.

"Danny would you just get over that?" Lindsay walked in to the break room and poured herself some coffee.

"What exactly did Danny's cousin do to you?" Hawkes inquired.

"He was drunk and put his hand on my butt I asked him to move it several times and then he pinched my butt and asked me what I was going to do about it. So I told him I was a cop and that I could have him arrested for assault, but since it was a nice party I wasn't going to cause a major scene; that he should get some coffee and learn to keep his hands to himself and we'd forget about the whole thing. Now can we drop it? I have to get back to work." Lindsay left.

"I guess she left an impression on cousin Vinnie." Hawkes smiled.

"The Joe Pesci movie?" Stella asked coming in for the end of the comment.

"No my actual cousin Vinnie." Danny said. "Lindsay putting him into a wall for pinching her butt."

"I'm guessing this guy isn't built like Joe Pesci?"

"6'4" and 250lbs." Danny replied.

"Go Lindsay." Stella smiled. "Other than an encounter with your cousin did she have a good time?"

"I think so."

"Then that's all that matters. I have to finish my report."

CSI NY CSI NY

"So Ms Monroe." Flack leant against the door frame of Lindsay's office.

"Hey." Lindsay looked up.

"What's this about you beating people up?"

"I pointed out to Danny's cousin that pinching my butt could be considered assault and I could have him arrested."

"By throwing him into a wall?" Flack questioned.

"I didn't throw him into a wall. I put the hand that was on my butt behind his back and turned him, it just happened to be that I was stood by a wall. You're tougher with old ladies besides he was drunk as a skunk."

"Okay okay." Flack conceded.

"So did you really drop by just to annoy me?"

"I haven't seen you in a few days."

"That's nice but what's the real reason you're here?"

"Police business."

"What can I do for you Detective?" Lindsay inquired.

"Do you recognise any of these men?" He handed her a photo array of stills.

Lindsay studied then for a moment.

"No. Sorry."

"Didn't think you would. But I had to ask."

"Is one of them the guy?" Lindsay inquired.

"A woman came forward who saw the man in brown. She described him to a sketched artist. The FBI ran it through their photo recognition software and came up with a name. They're taking over because he's from out of state and has an outstanding Federal warrant."

"What's his name?" Lindsay asked.

"I can't tell you."

"Right." Lindsay sighed. "Let me guess they have no idea where he is."

"No."

"So do you think they can convince Mac that he's nowhere in the state so I can get my life back?"

"You'll have to take that up with Mac." Flack told her. "But since I actually get to leave tonight, want to go and grab a drink? I could really do with one."

"Sounds good." Lindsay agreed.

"See who else wants to go." Flack requested. "I have to head back and box up everything for the FBI."

"Are they going to want the evidence we have?"

"Probably."

"Did you find the primary scene?" Lindsay asked.

"Not yet. But the Feds will keep working on that."

"What's your gut feeling?"

"I'm too tired to trust my gut other than to say it's hungry."

Lindsay opened her desk drawer and pulled out a couple of power bars and handed them to him.

"That should keep you going for a while."

"Thanks. So about seven?" Flack said.

"The usual place?" Lindsay asked.

"Why not."

"Okay."

TBC


	69. Chapter 69

"So does anyone want to go for a drink?" Lindsay asked at the end of the day when she finally caught up with people.

"You want to go for a drink?" Danny questioned.

"Don dropped by to see if I recognised anyone in a photo line up after they got a suspect for the guy in the coat. He wants to get a drink and told me to invite everyone else."

"I'm in." Hawkes stated.

"Sounds good to me." Stella agreed. "I'll go and drag Mac out of his office."

"Danny?"

"If everyone else is going." He shrugged.

"The usual place." Lindsay told them.

CSI NY CSI NY

"I'll buy the first round." Lindsay offered. "What does everyone want?"

Lindsay took a mental note.

"I'll come with you." Stella offered.

The two women went up to the bar while the guys grabbed a booth.

"You seem in a good mood." Stella commented.

"I managed to actually get out of going straight home which is always good."

"What can I get you ladies?" The bartender came over to them.

"Three beers, a club soda." Lindsay told him.

"Can I get a Virgin Raspberry Daiquiri?" Stella requested.

"I'll take a Merlin's Treat." Lindsay added.

"I'll have to look that one up."

"2oz mango juice, 1oz pineapple juice, 1oz orange juice, 1/2oz strawberry syrup. Mix that all together, pour over an ice filled wine glass and add 2oz of dry ginger ale. Add seasonal fruit and serve with grated nutmeg and straws." Lindsay replied.

"Okay." The bartender took her word for it.

"I was a cocktail waitress for a while in college." Lindsay explained to Stella.

"Right. Not drinking anything stronger?"

"I lost twenty hours; I'd rather not loose any more memories."

"Sensible." Stella agreed.

Lindsay paid for the drinks and they carried them over.

"What is it with women and cocktails?" Flack asked.

"What's wrong with cocktails?" Stella inquired.

"You shouldn't mix your spirits." Flack stated.

"It's a virgin daiquiri. I think I'll be okay."

Lindsay pulled one of the two straws out of her drink and pushed it towards him.

"Try it. It's called a Merlin's treat."

"You want me to try your drink?" Flack questioned.

"You wondered what it was about cocktails try it." She prompted.

"This I have to see." Danny joked.

"Okay." Flack took a sip. "It tastes of mango and ginger ale."

"Because that's basically what it is." Lindsay replied. "There isn't any alcohol in it. You can get a drink that tastes good without getting drunk."

"Lindsay used to be a cocktail waitress." Stella told them.

"You were a cocktail waitress?" Danny questioned.

"For about six months in college." Lindsay replied. "Tips helped cover some of the bills that my scholarship didn't cover."

"You're full of surprises." Hawkes stated.

"Mac knew." Lindsay pointed out.

"I've read your personnel file." Mac countered. "I know a lot of things."

"This should be interesting." Flack sat back.

"She speaks fluent Spanish."

"Why don't we just leave it at that?" Lindsay suggested. "The rest will come out when necessary."

"You speak Spanish?" Danny asked.

"Ranch hands." Lindsay shrugged. "I can cuss in six languages."

"A useful skill."

"I have a friend who can speak Kligon." Lindsay pointed out.

"Useful at Star Trek conventions." Hawkes took a sip of his beer.

TBC


	70. Chapter 70

Lindsay stood next to Flack as they watched Hawkes and Danny play pool. Mac and Stella were still sat at the booth talking.

"So do you speak any other languages other than Spanish and cursing?" Flack inquired.

"Enough French to order coffee and croissants and not get stuck with snails. I picked up bits and pieces of others over the years."

"I guess you do here and there." Flack took a sip of his beer.

"You know Becky could kick both of their asses at pool."

"You're sister is a pool shark?"

"She sees everything in maths terms. It's all to do with angles, speed. Newton's third law. Physics."

"So theoretically those two should be better at pool than me, because they've had to do more advance maths?" Flack asked.

"Just because you know the theory doesn't mean you can apply it. Case in point."

"You know we can hear you." Danny pointed out.

"Yes." Lindsay replied.

"Is this a resurfacing of cheerleader peppiness?" Danny inquired.

"You were a cheerleader?" Hawkes questioned.

"Head cheerleader." Danny corrected.

"Yes I was Susie High school. Now Danny since I meet most of your family last night which story would you like me to share?"

"How about a truce?" Danny suggested.

"Deal."

"Just tell us some other time." Flack whispered to her.

A few minutes passed and the music changed to something a little more country.

"I love this song." Lindsay said. "Anyone want to dance?"

"We're the middle of a game." Danny pointed out.

"Like he said." Hawkes agreed with him.

"What about you?" Lindsay asked Flack.

"I'm not even sure how you dance to this."

"It's okay I'll teach you." Lindsay grabbed his arm and dragged him towards the small dance floor.

"This doesn't bother you?" Hawkes asked Danny.

"Her dragging Flack to dance? No, it gets me out of it especially considering how much country music I now listen to."

"You probably shouldn't admit to that it will ruin your reputation."

CSI NY

"Lindsay looks happy." Stella commented to Mac.

"It could be because I told that on Monday she could go back to doing her usual job."

"I'm sure she appreciates that." Stella smiled.

"Are you having a good time?" Mac inquired.

"Yes. It's nice to be able to get out once in a while." She paused. "I know jazz is more your thing but do you want to dance?"

"Why not." Mac replied.

"You know you're not bad at this Flack." Stella commented.

"I don't think Lindsay's feet agree." Flack pointed out.

"I taught a defensive linebacker to waltz; I think I can manage teaching you to two step."

"Why would he need to waltz?" Flack questioned.

"He was getting married and didn't have time to go to proper dance lessons so Clay asked me to teach him."

"Is this someone I'd know?"

"Yes. But we're not going into details."

Mac spun Stella around which made her laugh.

"Don't worry we'll leave spins until next time."

"Who says there will be a next time?" Flack inquired.

"I'm pretty persuasive, you can ask Danny."

"What exactly are you persuasive about?"

"You'd be surprised and also in luck."

"In luck?" Flack questioned.

"That's the end of the song."

TBC


	71. Chapter 71

Danny looped an arm around Lindsay's waist.

"Are you ready to go?" He whispered into her ear.

"Let me just check that these two don't need us to pour them into a cab before we go." Lindsay replied.

Stella and Mac had already left on a case.

"Guys we're going to leave are you sober enough to get yourselves home?" Lindsay asked.

"We didn't drink that much." Flack stated.

"I'm just asking if you need us to put you in a cab." Lindsay told him.

"We'll be fine." Hawkes assured her.

"See you in the morning." Danny told them.

"Night." Lindsay added.

When they got outside, Danny pulled her to him and crushed her lips with his.

"What was that for?" Lindsay asked when her head stopped spinning.

"I've been wanting to do that all night."

"Why didn't you?" Lindsay inquired.

"I wasn't sure you'd want me to in front of everyone."

"Once Mac and Stella left it probably would have been okay." Lindsay told him.

"Nice to know for future reference."

"Let's go home."

"Take out?" Lindsay guessed since they hadn't eaten dinner.

"Sounds good. The subway is that way."

CSI NY

Lindsay picked up all the discarded clothes from around her apartment.

She was wearing one of Danny's shirts with the sleeves rolled up after dumping the clothes on the couch.

She crossed to the window and looked out.

She heard bare feet pad across the floor in her direction a few minutes later and warm arms wrap around her.

"Hey Montana."

"Hi."

"So what are you doing up?" Danny inquired.

"Couldn't sleep." Lindsay admitted.

"What's going on in that head of yours?" He asked kissing her shoulder.

"Everything and nothing."

"That's nice and broad." Danny teased. "Anything I can help with?"

"No. Just things my brain needs to process."

"Okay." Danny replied. "I have an idea."

Lindsay was a little confused as he released her and wandered over to the stereo. He found the CD was looking for and slipped it in. After making sure the volume on was on low so as not to disturb her neighbours he pressed play.

"Music?" Lindsay questioned.

"May I have this dance Ms Monroe?" He held his hand out to her.

"You want to dance?"

Danny nodded. He spun her around before pulling her into his arms.

"You know I've never been asked to dance by a man in his underwear before." Lindsay told him.

"I've never asked a woman wearing only my shirt to dance either so I'd say we're even." Danny kissed her.

"I love you." Lindsay told him.

"I love you too."

She rested her head against his shoulder and he hummed along to the music.

"_And the way you look tonight."_ He whispered in her ear along with the song.

Lindsay smiled.

Danny spun her around and pulled her back into his arms.

"You know you're not bad at this." Lindsay commented.

"You tell anyone…"

"Don't worry I doubt they'd believe me."

Danny kissed her again as they continued to dance

TBC


	72. Chapter 72

Lindsay, Danny and Mac were called to a scene first thing Monday morning. Lindsay appreciated being able to get out of the lab.

When they got to the scene they ducked under the tape.

Lindsay glanced over when they were sounds of a commotion. A woman had tried to get under the tape but one of the cops was trying to restrain her, her arms were flaying around, while he was trying to hold her still. It clicked in Lindsay's head.

"Hold this." Lindsay handed Danny her kit and walked over.

She waved a hand to get the woman's attention.

"Are you deaf?" She signed.

The woman nodded.

"Do you sign?" Lindsay asked.

The woman nodded again.

"Let her go." She instructed the officer.

"Detective?"

"She's deaf. She needs her hands free to talk." Lindsay informed him. "Let her go."

He released her.

"I'm L-I-N-D-S-A-Y M-O-N-R-O-E. I'm a detective with NYPD." Lindsay introduced herself. "What's your name?"

The woman quickly spelt out her name.

"J-U-L-I-E L-E-W-IS." Lindsay repeated to make sure she got it right the woman nodded. "Do you know that man?" Lindsay inquired.

"Yes. He's my boyfriend S-C-O-T-T A-D-A-M-S."

Lindsay signalled for her to wait.

"Flack." Lindsay called he walked over. "We got an ID on the body and this is his girlfriend."

"Detective Flack." Don introduced himself.

The woman looked to Lindsay.

"This is Detective F-L-A-C-K." Lindsay spoke out loud as she signed. "This is Julie Lewis, that's her boyfriend Scott Adams."

"I'm going to need ask her some questions. Can you help with that?" Flack inquired.

"Sure." Lindsay replied. "We need to ask you some questions. Why don't we go over here?" Lindsay told Julie.

"Did you know Lindsay could sign?" Danny asked Mac.

"Yes." Mac replied. "It's in her personnel file."

"Any chance I could read it?"

"Just ask her." Mac suggested.

"Ms Lewis is Mr Adams deaf too?" Flack asked. Lindsay relayed his question to Julie then translated for Flack.

"No. His sister Maggie is. Scott taught ASL at the local deaf centre. That's where they met. Julie is an administrator there." Lindsay explained.

"When was the last time you saw him or spoke to him?" He asked.

"Yesterday. We had lunch with Maggie and then Scott was going out with some friends. He usually calls to say goodnight around 11, but he didn't last night. I just thought he forgot the time. I came to walk to work with him."

"How does that work?" Flack asked.

"I'll explain relay to you later." Lindsay told him. "Next question."

"Where do you live?" Flack inquired.

"Two blocks away." Lindsay gave the response. "They walk to work together every morning. He's usually waiting at her front door when he wasn't there she thought she meet him here."

"Did Mr Adams have any enemies?" Flack asked.

"Not that she knows of."

"I'm going to need the names of the people that he went out with last night."

Lindsay told Julie. She took Flack's notepad and pen and handed them to Julie so she could write down the information.

"Since when do you sign?" Flack asked Lindsay.

"Since kindergarten." Lindsay replied. "I have a friend Marcy who is hard of hearing and it was only going to get worse as she got older so she was learning to sign. So I learnt with her. I have all my certificates."

"Does Danny know about this?"

"No." Lindsay replied. "Never came up."

"If I give her my card in case anything comes up…"

"She'll call you through relay, she'll type a message and the operator will tell you what she said. Then the operator will type out your response for Julie so she can read it." Lindsay explained.

"I'll arrange for some to take her home and find out if she would like us to call anyone."

TBC


	73. Chapter 73

"You're full of surprises Montana." Danny said as she returned to join him.

"Someone has to keep you on your toes. Vic's name is Scott Adams 32. He teaches ASL at the local deaf centre. He had lunch with his girlfriend and sister yesterday and was planning on going out with friends last night. He usually calls his girlfriend before she goes to bed and meets her in front of her building so they can walk to work together." She told Mac.

"He's been dead about 8 hours at least." Mac stated.

"So do you speak any other languages since Mac won't let me read your personnel file?" Danny inquired.

"Only English, Spanish and ASL fluently." Lindsay replied.

"Lindsay process around the body, Danny let's go and take a look around."

CSI NY CSI NY

"So what else don't I know about you?" Danny asked as they ate ice-cream as they walked back towards the lab after lunch.

"All manner of things, just like there are lots of things I don't know about you yet." Lindsay replied. "That's the fun part of relationships learning about the other person. Things come out eventually."

"Any deep dark secrets I should know about?"

"Not that I can think of." Lindsay replied. "Well nothing bad anyway."

"So you have good deep dark secrets?" Danny asked.

"There are probably some things you'd rather I didn't know about either."

"True."

Danny's cell phone rang.

"Messer." He answered. "Yeah, we're right outside Mac, we'll be there in a couple minutes." He hung up. "Mac found something."

"I guess that's it for the ice-cream." Lindsay dumped hers into the trash can.

"I guess so. But I'm sure we can come up with some interesting ideas for the ice-cream in your freezer." Danny whispered into her ear.

Lindsay blushed.

"You know you look cute when you blush Montana."

"I've heard that before." Lindsay said. "Let's get back to work."

CSI NY CSI NY

"You know every time I've seen you today you're blushing." Stella told Lindsay.

"I'm this close to assault a police officer." Lindsay sighed.

"What's Danny been doing?"

"He keeps saying things that make me blush and he's getting worse."

"Mac could have a discussion with him about proper work etiquette." Stella suggested.

"I can handle it."

"Or the other option is to make him blush worse." Stella told her.

"And how exactly would I do that?" Lindsay asked.

Stella stepped closer and whispered something to her.

"I'll never look at you the same again." Lindsay stated slightly shocked.

"You grow up in a city you learn how to shock a guy pretty early on."

"If a guy had a bad heart he'd probably keel over."

"I think Danny's heart is just fine." Stella winked at her. "I have to get back."

"Thanks Stella."

Lindsay continued to work.

It was another hour before she saw Danny again.

"I got the results back on that fibre; it's consistent with the carpet in his apartment." Danny told her.

"So he sat on his floor." Lindsay guessed. "Or picked his pants up that he'd dropped on the floor.

"Looks that way." Danny replied. "How's it going here?"

"I'm just going to pick up some results from trace."

Danny whispered something in her ear.

Lindsay blushed for a second and then whispered a slightly amended version of what Stella suggested.

Danny's eyes bugged and he ran a finger around his collar.

"See you later." Lindsay told him. She smiled as she left.

"You okay Danny?" Hawkes asked a minute later when he stumbled around him.

"I think Lindsay just won that round." Danny sighed.

"Round of what?" Hawkes was confused.

"Never mind."

TBC


	74. Chapter 74

A few weeks passed and it was mid September.

Danny sat on Lindsay's couch going through his mail while Lindsay was sat at the table reading the paper.

"I got a letter from my landlord." Danny said.

"Umm." Lindsay was half listening.

"He's reminding me that my lease is up at the end of the month."

"You should take care of that." Lindsay said.

"It seems stupid paying all that rent for a place I've never at."

"Uh huh."

"I mean I only go there to grab a few clean things every now and again and to pick up my mail." He carried on.

"Uh huh." Lindsay continued to read the paper.

She let him talk for ten minutes.

"You know speaking of the date, Clay will be here in a few weeks, do you still want to meet the team?" Lindsay inquired.

"Of course." Danny replied a little confused.

"I'll make sure he sets it up." Lindsay walked over and sat down next to him.

"Great."

"Danny." She put her hand on his leg.

"Yeah?"

"Do you want to move in?"

"Huh?"

"You've been hinting at it for ten minutes." Lindsay pointed out.

"You don't think it's too soon?" Danny asked.

"You live here unofficially anyway. You have a quarter of my closet, you have multiple drawers. Half the CD's over there are yours. You just don't pay rent."

"So you think it works we've only been together for a few months?"

"Danny it's not like I only met you a few months ago, I've known you a year." Lindsay pointed out.

"I'm just giving you a chance to back out."

"If you want to keep your place its fine, it's up to you. I don't mind you moving in."

"Okay let's do it."

"You're not going to back out?" Lindsay asked.

"No." Danny replied.

"We'll right down what we expect of each other like a contract." Lindsay told him.

"You do watch too much Judge Judy."

"It makes common sense." Lindsay stated.

"Okay." Danny agreed. "I pay half the rent and half the utilities."

"Except the phone bill."

"The phone bill?"

"I make lots of long distance calls, and since practically everyone you know lives in the greater New York area it makes sense. You can pay for storage."

"Storage?" Danny questioned.

"We have twice as much furniture as we need." Lindsay pointed out. "It only makes sense to keep it."

"Good point." Danny agreed. "So what are you going to do with all the extra money since I'll be paying for half the rent?"

"Spend it on stuff toys for my nieces and nephews when I finally get around to going to FAO Schwartz."

"The toy shop?" Danny questioned.

"I've always wanted to go there since I saw Home Alone."

"Toys'r'us in Time Square is bigger."

"But there are lots of Toys'r'us's."

"FAO Schwartz it is." Danny smiled.

The phone rang.

"Monroe." Lindsay said when she answered.

"_Lindsay it's Don."_

"Hey did you want Danny?"

"_No. Mind if I come up?" _

"You're outside?" Lindsay questioned.

"_I'm just buying doughnuts but yes?"_

"Sure. Just ring the buzzer." Lindsay told him.

"_Thanks._"

They hung up.

"Everything okay?" Danny asked.

"Flack's come over as soon as he's done buying doughnuts." Lindsay told him.

TBC


	75. Chapter 75

Lindsay let Flack in.

"I'm guessing this isn't a social call." Lindsay said.

"Why would you say that?" Flack inquired.

"You bought doughnuts." Lindsay pointed out.

"Maybe I was just hungry."

"Maybe you're supposed to be at work as well." Lindsay countered crossing her arms.

"Is she always this stubborn?" Flack asked Danny.

"She prefers tenacious, which is apparently a good thing." Danny shrugged when Lindsay glared at him.

"So what's going on?" Lindsay asked. "I'm supposed to be at work by four anyway, so it's obviously something that couldn't wait."

"Have you watched the news? Not that I'm sure it's on the news yet?" Flack inquired.

"I read the paper." Lindsay replied. She looked at him and then it hit her. "Where?"

"Seattle." Flack replied.

"Did I miss something?" Danny asked.

"He did it again." Lindsay sighed sitting down.

"He?" It took him a second to realise what he meant. "How many?"

"Twelve." Flack replied.

"Any…." Lindsay started to ask.

"Female CSI. She had a severe allergic reaction to Rohypnol she crashed her car. Luckily there was a patrol car behind her and they got her an ambulance quickly."

"Is she okay?" Lindsay asked.

"From what I've been told she will be but she's got a couple of broken legs and concussion on top of a lack of memory about the whole thing. She was lucky."

"Excuse me." Lindsay got up and walked into the bedroom.

"Thanks for coming and telling us in person." Danny told him.

"Is she going to be okay?"

"The nightmares will probably start again but hopefully."

"Nightmares?"

"Guillotines." Danny explained. "She woke up in a cold sweat for two weeks straight. I'll go and check on her."

Lindsay was sat on the edge of the bed with her back to the door.

"Hey." Danny came and sat down next to her. "How ya doing?"

Lindsay wiped tears from her cheeks.

"This is stupid."

"You're allowed to cry." Danny put his arm around her.

"It's just ridiculous."

"You're as much a victim as…."

Lindsay glared at him.

"I know you don't like the word but it's true. You just happen to be one of the lucky ones. Wrong place at the wrong time."

"I can't…."

"It's okay." He held her against him as she cried. "It's okay." He whispered.

"All done." Lindsay said a few minutes later. "I must look a mess."

"You look beautiful." Danny kissed her.

"And you're a bad liar."

"Who said I was lying? I love you."

"I love you too." She paused. "Can you give me a minute?"

"Okay." He kissed her forehead. "You know where I am if you need me."

"Thanks."

Danny left her alone.

"She okay?" Flack asked.

"She will be. She just needs a minute." Danny replied. "Clay's in town in a couple weeks are you still coming to meet the team?"

"Of course."

"Feel like helping me move?" Danny inquired.

"Move?" Flack questioned.

"My lease is up at the end of the month and since I'm never there anymore I'm moving in here."

"And how does Lindsay feel about that?"

"She suggested it." Danny replied.

"Only after you hinted for ten minutes." Lindsay walked out of the bedroom.

"How are you doing?" Flack asked.

"I could really use one of those doughnuts." Lindsay replied.

"Help yourself."

TBC


	76. Chapter 76

"How's it going?" Stella came into the locker room moments after Lindsay had entered.

"Okay." Lindsay replied.

"Did you hear about…."

"Don came over and brought doughnuts to tell me." Lindsay shut her locker door.

"How are you doing with it?"

"I'm okay." Lindsay replied. "It will be better when they catch the guy."

"Hopefully it will be sooner rather than later." Stella said.

"Yeah." Lindsay paused. "Danny's moving in."

"Wow."

"Yeah." Lindsay sighed.

"You don't want him to?"

"No it's not that. It's just an odd day."

"Whose idea was it?" Stella inquired.

"His lease is up at the end of the month anyway. So he spent ten minutes hinting while I ignored him. It's not like he doesn't live with me anyway. I mean he hasn't slept at his apartment since my parents left. This way he pays half the bills too rather paying for a place he's never at."

"True. When's he moving in?"

"He's going to talk to his landlord and pack up the rest of his clothes since he has the night off." Lindsay closed her locker.

"Hey Lindsay, Stella." Hawkes walked in.

"Hey." Lindsay replied.

"Did you hear…"

"Yeah." Lindsay stopped him. "I have some paperwork to do before I get called anywhere so I'll see you later."

"She okay?" Hawkes asked Stella.

"I think she's a little shaken. Flack took her doughnuts when he went to tell her. She'll be fine."

"Okay."

"Danny's moving in with her."

"That's quick." Hawkes commented.

"Apparently his lease is up and he's never home anyway." Stella shrugged. "Do you want to grab something to eat? I missed lunch?"

"Sure." Hawkes agreed.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Lindsay." Mac appeared in the doorway to her office.

"Yes I've heard and I'm fine." Lindsay replied.

"It doesn't sound like it."

"People keep asking me if I'm okay." Lindsay sighed. "Sorry."

"You can make an appointment with the department counsellor if you need to." Mac told her.

"I cried on Danny's shoulder, ate too many doughnuts with Flack and now I'm fine."

"Okay. We're here if you want to talk."

"Thanks Mac."

"But since that wasn't why I was here."

"Did you need something?" Lindsay inquired.

"We have a hit and run."

"I'll just save this and grab my kit."

BSG

"What did you do to my bedroom?" Lindsay asked when she got home just before 1.

Danny was sat on the bed surrounded by clothes.

"I didn't realise I had quite so many clothes."

"You never realise how much stuff you accumulate until you move."

"There aren't enough hangers." Danny stated.

"Did you bring the ones from your apartment?" Lindsay asked.

"No." He admitted sheepishly.

"Then that might be your problem. You should have just left everything on the hangers and covered it with trash bags. It saves all the effort of having to put things back on hangers or not having enough."

"You couldn't have told me that before?"

Lindsay opened the blanket box which lived at the bottom of her bed and took out the blankets that were inside.

"Put everything in there so we don't fall over it. I'll put these on the couch and then we sort it all out tomorrow when we get back from work."

"Okay. How was work?"

"Fine. I'm going to take a quick shower before bed."

TBC


	77. Chapter 77

"Montana?" Danny woke up and found Lindsay's side of the bed empty. He crawled out and checked around the apartment but found it empty. It was tidier than he'd left it the night before.

He was about to pick up the phone and call her cell when the door opened.

"Hey you're up." Lindsay replied.

"Your side of the bed was cold. How long have you been up?"

"About an hour." Lindsay admitted. "I couldn't sleep."

"So you tided up and then went out?" Danny questioned.

"We were out of milk." Lindsay shrugged. "I got some bagels for breakfast."

"Okay."

"Were you worried?" Lindsay asked.

"I'd just wondered where you'd gone." Danny shrugged.

Lindsay grabbed his arm and dragged him into the kitchen. She lifted the Statue of Liberty magnet and handed him the note that was under it.

_In case you wake up before I get back, I've gone to get milk. L xx_

"I guess that told me."

"It's the city someone should know where you are."

"I guess I'm not that observant first thing."

"You probably shouldn't mention that to Mac." Lindsay teased. "I also called my Mom and asked her to send something that will help with our closet issues."

"Lindsay it's like 5.30 in Montana." Danny pointed out.

"My parents get up at 5." Lindsay replied. "It was the only way to catch them before we went to work."

"What exactly did ask your mother for?"

"She bought me these things that expand your closet space by hooking lots of hangers onto one hanger which doubles your closet space. I have no idea what they are called. I just didn't pack them when I packed all my stuff to be shipped here. It's either that or I packed them in the boxes I left in my parents attic. I mean since I didn't exactly have a place to live when I got him they shipped it all when I got this place."

"Okay."

"You might want to take a shower." Lindsay suggested as he stepped closer to him.

"Are you saying I smell Miss Monroe?" Danny wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her against him.

"That's Detective Monroe and you can take it anyway you like. We have to be at work in an hour."

"You want to join me?" Danny asked.

"I already took a shower." Lindsay replied. She gave him a quick kiss. "I'll make breakfast."

"Okay okay okay." Danny stated.

CSI NY

"So I hear you're moving in with Lindsay." Hawkes said as he and Danny drove to their scene.

"Where did you hear that?"

"From Stella. Lindsay told her."

"Are you going to give me a lecture about how it's too soon?" Danny asked.

"No. I was just ask when you were doing it so I can make sure I'm working and don't have to help."

"Some friend you are."

"Hey I just don't like throwing my back out moving furniture up and downstairs."

"Most of my stuff is going in storage anyway."

"How do you feel about that?" Hawkes inquired.

"The stuff she brought from her house is much nicer than most of my stuff anyway." Danny shrugged.

"House?" Hawkes questioned.

"Lindsay has a house."

"Where?"

"Back on the family ranch. Apparently it's the Monroe's idea of a 21st birthday present. They built it."

"And she has this house?"

"It's rented out to ranch hands, it covers the repairs, her horse and her student loans." Danny explained.

"Nice birthday gift." Hawkes stated.

"I was supposed to ask you if you're still coming when Clay gets here in a couple weeks."

"Of course." Hawkes replied.

"I'll let her know."

TBC


	78. Chapter 78

Lindsay carefully packed Danny's books into a box. While Danny picked up and armful of stuff and just dumped it into a box.

"Why do men never know how to pack?"

"Why do women pack everything but the kitchen sink?" Danny countered.

"I think the kitchen sink has to stay, it came with the apartment." Lindsay pointed out.

"Why don't you show me how to pack?" Danny suggested.

"You have to sort it into three piles."

"Three piles."

"Stuff you want to bring to my place, stuff to put in storage and stuff that you can donate to Goodwill or some other charity."

"Why am I giving stuff to goodwill?" Danny asked.

"Because when you move you realise just how much crap you have that you don't need or are never going to use that someone might. So you might as well get rid of it."

"So you threw everything out?"

"I sent four boxes to Goodwill when I moved."

"Okay."

"Why don't you finish going through the books?" Lindsay suggested.

It took another four hours to finish packing up Danny's stuff.

Three boxes of stuff to go to Goodwill, another five boxes to take to Lindsay's which they were taking with him.

There were twelve boxes of things he insisted on keeping but didn't need on a daily basis which would go to storage with all but two items of furniture.

"How did I accumulate so much stuff?" Danny asked surveying it all.

"How long have you lived here?"

"About five years."

"That's how." Lindsay replied. "How about we take this stuff and go home? You and Flack can move the rest tomorrow?"

"So that's how it works, you leave me to move by myself?"

"I helped you pack and I'll help you unpack. Moving furniture wasn't part of the deal. Besides you picked the day you and Don had off. It's not my fault I have to work."

"I think it's a conspiracy." Danny replied.

"You think that and I'll grab these boxes." Lindsay picked up the two lightest boxes. "I want Chinese food."

"You're thinking about food?"

"I haven't eaten in about eight hours and it's almost nine. I think food is appropriate."

"Is that a subtle hint for me to offer to pay?"

"No it's a hint for you to get moving. I'll call the order in when we get in the car."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay stood looking proudly at her work. She'd installed a new shelving system and set up all Danny's books.

She had finished the rest of the unpacking, so other than a really ugly old chair which Danny loved and a dresser he was all moved in.

Lindsay went and got dressed for work and left Danny a note.

CSI NY CSI NY

When Danny and Flack carried the chair up the stairs and into the apartment they set it down.

Danny noticed the note.

_**Danny,**_

_**There is beer and sandwiches in the fridge. **_

_**I'll see you when I get back from work. **_

_**Love L xx**_

_**P.S. Don't drink and drive.**_

_**P.P.S Admire my shelf building skills.**_

Danny couldn't help but smile.

"What?" Flack asked.

"There's beer and sandwiches in the fridge, we're not to drink and drive and she would like us to admire her handywoman skills in building shelves."

"Hey if she can take a car apart and rebuild it I wouldn't argue with her shelf building skills."

"Arguing with her is fun. She's usually right most of the time and so the argument is unnecessary."

"But of course it brings about the benefits of make up sex."

"Of course." Danny smirked. "Do you want the beer before or after we move the dresser?"

TBC


	79. Chapter 79

Lindsay studied it from all angles wondering about its sudden appearance. She looked it up and down.

"Lindsay are you okay?" Stella came up and stood next to Lindsay in the doorway. "Nice flowers."

"Thanks."

"From Danny?"

"Yes." Lindsay confirmed.

"Does he give you flowers often?" Stella asked.

"No. I got flowers on one of our first dates, I got one flower when he brought my Mom flowers when she invited him over for dinner and I got flowers when I was in hospital." Lindsay replied.

"That's got to be at least a hundred bucks in flowers."

"I know." Lindsay replied. "That's Bitterroot." Lindsay pointed out one of the flowers.

"You know roses are the state flower of New York." Stella told her. "So what did he do?"

"I don't know." Lindsay stated.

"He's in court all day so you can't ask him." Stella remembered.

"Exactly."

"What does the card say?"

"Love Danny." Lindsay handed it to her.

"You know that's an odd place to write it." The only writing on the card was in the bottom right hand corner. "He had all that space."

"Uh huh." Lindsay tilted her head as Stella studied the card.

"You got a UV light?" Stella asked.

"Um yeah." Lindsay's kit was sat on the floor. She opened it up and pulled the light out and handed it to Stella with a pair of orange goggles.

Stella flipped off the overhead lights and turned on the UV light.

A message glowed on the card.

"UV pens." She handed it to Lindsay.

_**It turns out they have Bitterroot in New York. **_

_**Who knew? **_

"Well that was informative." Lindsay replied as she switched off the light and Stella put the main lights back on.

"And it still doesn't tell you what he did."

"And it's going to drive me crazy all day." Lindsay sighed.

"There you are." Hawkes came up behind them.

"Which one of us were you looking for?" Stella asked.

"Lindsay. I have a strange message from Danny. He's said to use a UV light and that you'd figure out what he meant."

"We already figure it out but thanks." Lindsay replied.

"Nice flowers." Hawkes commented.

"Thanks."

"What did Danny do?"

"Uh." Lindsay banged her head against the glass wall.

"Be careful you'll break the glass." Hawkes jokingly her.

"We were just trying to figure that out." Stella informed him. "And Danny's note that he just found out they had Bitterroot in New York wasn't too helpful."

"Which one is the Bitterroot?" Hawkes asked.

"The big purply-pink ones." Lindsay replied.

"Roses too. Those had to cost a few bucks."

"Are we having some sort of party I wasn't invited to?" Flack walked up to the group. "Nice flowers."

"Thanks."

"So?"

"We're just trying to figure out why Danny sent Lindsay flowers." Stella informed him.

"Maybe he's being romantic." Flack offered.

"Guys don't sending someone a hundred bucks worth of flowers for no reason." Stella stated. "Especially if they're not in the habit of doing it."

"You learn something new around here everyday." Flack smiled.

Lindsay's pager went off.

"My DNA results are in." She stated. "Excuse me." She left.

"What's the big deal with flowers?" Flack asked.

"If someone does something out of character you wonder why."

"Danny's sent women flowers before." Flack pointed out.

"He gave her flowers on one of their first date, a flower when he bought her mother flowers and when she was in hospital. That really doesn't set up a pattern of behaviour."

TBC


	80. Chapter 80

"Hold the elevator." Flack called.

A hand stuck out to stop the doors closing.

"Thanks." Flack replied.

"No problem." Danny told him.

"How was court?"

"Not too bad. Although the guy has an inbuilt reason for appeal. Inadequate counsel. The guy was a serious idiot."

"You did your part; it's up to the jury now." Flack shrugged. "So what did you do?"

"About what?" Danny inquired.

"Lindsay."

"What about her?" Danny was a little confused.

"I'm reliably informed men don't send women a hundred bucks worth of flowers for no reason."

"One I've never spent a hundred bucks on flowers in my life and two I didn't do anything."

"But you did send her flowers didn't you?" Flack asked.

"Yes."

"She and Stella have spent all day trying to figure out what you did."

"I didn't do anything." Danny stated.

"Then why send her flowers?"

"Why not?" Danny shrugged.

"So she's been driving herself crazy all day for no reason?"

"Maybe I should go and talk to her." Danny stated. "See you later."

When Danny finally caught up with Lindsay she was in their office on the phone looking at the flowers while she had a debate, her back was too him.

Danny leant against the door frame waiting for her to hang up.

"You know you could sit down." Lindsay said when she hung up.

"How did you know I was here?"

"The way I normally do." She paused. "And your reflection in the monitor."

"Like the flowers?" Danny asked.

"They're beautiful. Why did you send them?"

"Flack says you've been trying to figure it out all day."

"You don't send me flowers. Like I told you before it's suspicious behaviour."

"It couldn't just be because I haven't seen you for a few days because we've been on different shifts and the court case moved up and I thought it was a nice gesture."

"You couldn't have put that on the card rather than 'They have Bitterroot in New York. Who knew?'" Lindsay inquired.

"I see you figured it out."

"We'd figured it out before Hawkes came and told me your message."

"Well you have to work for your flowers." He teased.

"Not funny."

"Sorry." He apologised. "Court was pushed back half an hour so I took a walk and the florist had Bitterroot, they didn't look right by themselves so I had her add in some roses, which are the state flower of New York."

"Stella mentioned that."

"It still didn't look right so we added the rest." He shrugged.

"They're beautiful."

"So are you."

"Now you're just trying to stop me being annoyed you sent me flowers."

"Don't you think getting annoyed your boyfriend sent you flowers is a little strange?" Danny asked.

"If you're sending me flowers in future stick to anniversaries or birthdays."

"What about valentine's day?"

"That will work too." Lindsay replied.

"Okay. No more flowers."

"But you could take me to Coney Island to make up for it."

"You want to me to take you to Brooklyn?" Danny questioned. "To make up for me sending you flowers."

"I was watching this thing on roller coasters and the Cyclone was on their top ten list. I'd totally forgotten it was only in Brooklyn."

"I see."

"I'll pay; I just want you to come with me."

"Sure. As long as you buy me dinner." Danny replied.

"I think I can handle that."

TBC


	81. Chapter 81

"Women are illogical." Danny told Mac when he caught up with him.

"Hello to you too Danny." Mac said. "I take it court didn't go well."

"It went fine, the evidence was solid."

"Then do you want to explain your statement?" Mac suggested.

"I have to take Lindsay to Coney Island to make up for the fact that I sent her flowers." He explained.

"I'm going to need more than that."

"I sent her flowers earlier because it turned out the florist near the court house had bitterroot. She spent all day trying to figure out why I sent them and now I have to take her to Brooklyn to make up for it."

"I used to send Clare flowers when I broke our plans, but one day she sat me down and told me that getting flowers should be a positive experience if I kept sending them as an apology then it took the excitement out of it. If I wanted to give them other than the usual occasions then she knew it was because I wanted to give them to her not because I felt I had to."

"So you're saying I shouldn't give her flowers as an apology?" Danny guessed.

"If you give her flowers make sure she knows its because you want to not because you felt obligated to. And have a good time at Coney Island. I'll see you tomorrow."

CSI NY CSI NY

"How are you doing?" Mac walked in to find Lindsay later.

"I'm fine. I'm still waiting on a few test results."

"Danny came to see me earlier."

"Let me guess women are illogical, and I'm making him take me to Coney Island as an apology for sending me flowers."

"Something like that." Mac said.

"Did he forget to mention that I was going to pay?"

"He may not have."

"I thought not. I just thought it would be fun to go and ride a roller coaster I haven't been on one in years and I still get lost I mean I've just about figure out Manhattan, Brooklyn is another matter." She paused. "And we're supposed to leave personal matters outside work." Lindsay sighed. "Sorry."

"It's okay. Have fun on the Cyclone, it's an experience."

"Thanks Mac."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay let herself into the apartment and set the flowers down.

"Hey." Danny came out of the bedroom pulling a clean t-shirt over his head.

"Hey."

"I spilt soda down my shirt." He explained. "How long until you're ready to go?"

"You don't have to come with me if you don't want to." Lindsay told him.

"Huh?"

"You don't have to come if you don't want to. Suggesting we go to Coney Island wasn't meant as a punishment, if you don't want to go I can figure out how to get there by myself."

"Where'd this come from?"

"Apparently women are illogical."

"Montana, come on I didn't mean it like that." Danny stood in front of her.

"It's been an odd week and we haven't seen each other much. I just thought it would be fun."

"It will be."

"Not if you're only going because you want to appease me." She crossed her arms.

"I'm not."

"So you want to go?"

"It wasn't what I had planned for tonight but it will be fun."

"What did you have planned?" Lindsay asked.

"My plans involved dinner and a lot less clothes." He put his hands on her hips.

"I see."

"But we can go and ride a roller coaster; I'll even try to win you one of those stuffed toys." Danny told her.

"You really want to go?" Lindsay asked.

"Yes, if you move that cute butt of yours." He kissed her.

"It will take me ten minutes to change."

"I'll be waiting." Danny replied.

TBC


	82. Chapter 82

"So have you been on it before?" Lindsay asked as they stood at the base of the Cyclone.

"Not for about ten years." Danny admitted. "I've been to Six Flags outside Buffalo a couple times. Aiden dragged me."

"I'm sure you protested." Lindsay smiled.

"It was easier not to. So are you sure you want to do this?"

"What are you scared?" Lindsay inquired.

"No." Danny replied adamantly.

"Look we'll go on the roller coaster and I'll buy youa funnel cake."

"A what?" Danny questioned.

"You city boys live such sheltered lives." Lindsay joked.

"Coming from a country girl." Danny tickled her.

"Let's go and join the queue."

.-

"That was so much fun." Lindsay giggled when they exited the roller coaster.

"You're an adrenaline junkie." Danny concluded.

"Not usually. I just like roller coasters." Lindsay shrugged. "And Ferris Wheels."

"I believe I was promised Funnel Cake."

"Let's try this way." Lindsay grabbed his hand.

"Yes ma'am."

"Why haven't I had this before?" Danny asked as he tucked into his funnel cake a few minutes later.

"Maybe because you're too busy eating mealworm spaghetti and wasp tamales?" Lindsay suggested.

"Good point. So what now?"

"I believe you were going to try and win me a stuffed toy."

"You don't want to go on any of the other rides?"

"We can do that later." Lindsay replied.

"Okay."

Lindsay stopped as Danny started to walk away.

"What?" Danny turned and looked at her.

"Sorry, it just reminded me of a date I had when I was teenager."

"You went to an amusement park?" Danny questioned.

"County fair." Lindsay corrected.

"This is a date?" Danny joked.

"Just because we live together doesn't mean we stop the whole dating thing." Lindsay pointed out.

"You do know that men just use dates…"

"As a quick way of convincing women to have sex with them. Yes I know and I knew that before they decided to mention it on Friends. But dates are supposed to be fun."

"Fun?"

"After awkward first dates they should be. Although blind dates are the worst."

"And just how many dates are you planning on going on in the future?" Danny asked.

"Well there was a guy yesterday who offered to show me the time of my life." Lindsay pointed out.

"Oh really? Should I be jealous?"

"That depends are you jealous of drunks in handcuffs?"

"No. But we could have some fun with handcuffs when we get home." He suggested.

"I don't know what you mean Detective." Lindsay blushed.

"Of course you don't. I love you." He kissed her.

"Prove it." Lindsay challenged stopping at a booth. "Let's see how good your aim is."

Danny finished the end of his funnel cake and as Lindsay handed the guy some money.

Danny had three shots and missed with each one.

"How exactly do you pass your proficiency?" Lindsay asked.

"You think you can do any better?" Danny inquired.

Lindsay rolled her eyes and handed the guy some more money.

A minute later Danny was holding a stuffed blue hippo.

"Beginners luck." Danny stated.

"You just don't like loosing to a girl." Lindsay teased.

"Come on I'll buy you a Nathan's hotdog." Danny told her.

TBC


	83. Chapter 83

"So how was Coney Island?" Flack inquired as Danny ducked under the crime scene tape.

"Not too bad." Danny replied. "I ended up with a blue hippo called Bert."

"Bert?" Flack questioned.

"She named it."

"How did you end up with it?"

"It turns out she's a better shot with a water pistol." Danny replied. "I think it was reciprocal for me giving her the baseball."

"I think she got the better end of the deal." Flack stated.

"Probably. So what've we got?"

CSI NY CSI NY

"We're going to be here for hours." Lindsay said as she and Stella slowly picked up all the pieces of glass from the shattered window.

The suspect had put his hands on the glass window of the restaurant and to peer inside before he'd smashed the window and then shot the victim.

Since the bullets had been through and through and disintegrated on impact the prints were their best hope, along with witness sketches.

"It's all part of the job." Stella replied. "Then we get the fun part of trying to put it back together."

"Good thing I'm good a jigsaws."

They went on picking up glass for a few minutes before something caused them to look up.

"Get down." Mac yelled.

Lindsay and Stella ducked as car drove passed firing at machine gun at the scene.

Shots were fired back and one of the patrol cars took off after them calling in for back up as they went.

Mac checked on people.

"Are you both okay?" He came over to Stella and Lindsay.

"I'm fine." Stella replied.

"Lindsay."

"Yeah." She sat up holding her hand to her head.

"Here." Mac handed her and handkerchief to hold against the bloody cut. "I need an ambulance."

"I'm fine Mac." Lindsay insisted. "I just got caught by some flying glass."

"Let the EMTs decide that." Mac told her. "You're sure you're okay?" He asked Stella.

"I'm fine. How's everyone else?"

"No injuries other than Lindsay."

"That's lucky."

"Blanks." Mac replied.

"Who fires on a scene full of cops?" Lindsay asked.

"If they catch them you can ask."

"Detective Taylor an ambulance will be here in two minutes." One of the uniforms came over and informed him.

"Thanks."

CSI NY CSI NY

Flack heard the call of shots fired over the radio; he heard the request for back up cars and the request for an ambulance.

He was just about to check on the situation when his cell phone rang.

"Flack." He answered.

"_Don, it's Mac._"

"Is everything okay? I just heard…"

"_Everyone is fine. Lindsay is concerned about Danny. Did he hear?"_

"Not yet. You want me to tell him?" Flack asked.

"_Yes. Tell him everyone is fine, some idiot decided to fire a machine gun full of blanks at us."_

"Is Lindsay going to call him?" Flack inquired.

"_She will as soon as the EMTs check her out."_

"I thought you said she was fine?" Flack asked.

"_She has a cut on her forehead where she was hit by some flying glass. She'll be fine." _

"I'll tell him, but the sooner she calls him the better." Flack stated.

"_Tell him to finish there before he thinks of leaving." _

"Okay." Flack replied. "I'm glad everyone is okay."

"_So are we."_

TBC


	84. Chapter 84

"Danny." Flack walked over to him.

"I lifted a couple prints." Danny told him.

"That's great. Umm."

"What's going on?" Danny asked.

"Someone opened fire at the scene Mac, Stella and Lindsay are at."

"What?" Danny stood up.

"It was only blanks. I spoke to Mac they're all fine."

"Seriously?"

"He'll have Lindsay call you as soon as the EMTs have checked her over." Flack explained.

"I thought you said they were all fine."

"She got hit by a flying piece of glass and got a cut on the forehead. Mac says she is fine."

"I'm going to…" Danny started.

"Mac says you have to stay here." Flack told him.

"What?"

"I'm just relaying orders."

"It shouldn't …"

"Danny she's fine." Flack assured him.

"Being hit with flying glass is fine." Danny retorted sarcastically.

"This is why she told me to get Mac to tell you if anything happened to her."

"What?" Danny was confused.

"A while back we had a conversation. She said if anything happened to her at a scene to tell Mac first and get him to tell you. Now I see why."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Just keep that on there for a while." The EMT taped a pad to Lindsay's cut. "You don't need stitches."

"Thank you." Lindsay replied. She got up from the back of the rig and pulled her cell phone off her belt and dialled.

"_Are you okay Montana?" _Danny answered.

"Hello to you too."

"_Hello. Are you okay?"_

"I'm fine. It's just a little cut, I don't even need stitches."

"_Are you sure?"_

"Hang on." Lindsay sighed. She walked back over to the EMT. "Excuse me."

"Something wrong?" He asked.

"I know this is going to sound slightly stupid, but can you tell my boyfriend that I'm fine? He's not sure he believes me."

"Sure Detective." He took the phone. "Hello. This is Paul Miller; I'm the EMT who treated Detective Monroe."

"_The EMT?"_ Danny questioned.

"Detective Monroe has a small laceration on her forehead, it won't need stitches, she doesn't need to go to the hospital and it shouldn't scar. She's just fine."

"_Okay."_ Danny replied.

"That satisfy you?" Lindsay inquired.

"_That's a low blow Montana."_

"If you don't believe Mac, Flack or me that I'm fine Paul seemed liked a reasonable person for you to talk to."

"_What happened?"_

"Some idiot thought it would be a good idea to do a drive by on a bunch of cops with a machine gun full of blanks." Lindsay explained. "I was the only one with even a scratch."

"_Are you sure you're okay?"_

"Danny honestly I'm fine. I'll see you back at the lab later, I have some glass to pick up."

"_You're going back to work?"_

"Danny when you were kid did you ever cut yourself and then go right back to playing?" Lindsay inquired.

"_Sure."_

"Just add twenty years and instead of playing I'm doing my job. I'm fine and I'll see you later."

"_Okay." _Danny knew it wouldn't do much good to argue with her.

"Bye."

"_Bye."_

They hung up.

"Danny okay?" Stella inquired.

"He'll get over it." Lindsay stated. "So where were we with the glass before we were interrupted?"

TBC


	85. Chapter 85

"Hey." Lindsay leant against the doorframe.

"Hey." Danny put down what he was doing. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

"Having a bandage on your forehead would indicate the opposite."

"It doesn't even hurt. I just haven't gotten around to pulling off the bandage yet."

"Dampen the tape it makes it hurt less." He advised.

"I'll keep that in mind." Lindsay replied. "Since we're both certain I'm in one piece now, I have to go and start putting my glass jigsaw back together."

"Montana." Danny stepped closer. "Can I get a hug?"

"That can be arranged." Lindsay stepped into his arms.

"I'm glad you're okay." He whispered in her ear. "I love you."

"Me too." She replied. "And I should get back to work before Mac notices."

"Okay. Just don't go getting shot at again."

"I'll try not to." Lindsay smiled. "See you later."

"Later Montana."

CSI NY CSI NY

"You know she's not going to evaporate into thin air." A voice from behind Danny.

"What?" He turned around. "Hey Flack."

"I said she's not going to evaporate so you don't need to watch her so closely."

Lindsay was working in a room down the hall but with the glass walls it was easy to look through.

"I wasn't…"

"Danny I've been stood here for the past five minutes." Flack pointed out.

"Right."

"She's fine right?"

"Yeah."

"Then stop looking at her like she's going to evaporate or go and help her put her window back together."

"How do you know what she's doing?" Danny asked.

"I ran into Stella." Flack replied.

"You came by to check up on them?"

"Partially. I came to see if you have anything for me yet that could point towards a suspect." Flack replied.

"Dirt on his shoes is consistent with Central Park, but since he walked through the park on his way to work it doesn't prove anything. The brown fibre is alpaca."

"Alpaca is a llama sheep thing?" Flack questioned.

"Something like that." Danny replied. "They use it to make sweaters, socks, blankets, coats that type of thing."

"So we're looking for someone wearing alpaca?"

"Possibly."

"Way to equivocate buddy." Flack patted him on the back.

"Sometimes fibres are just fibres sometimes they are evidence."

"Can you tell me anything about the guy I'm looking for?"

"He has AB- blood and is white."

"AB-?"

"You've just narrowed it down to one percent of the population having that blood type. 0.97 males to every woman on average, and 81.7 white. You do the math."

"That's still a lot of people."

"About one and a quarter million across the country. If you multiply it out."

"Well I doubt all of them are in the 8 million in New York." Flack stated.

"I'll let you know what else I come up with." Danny told him.

"Thanks." Flack replied. "And don't spend too much time watching the girl."

"Why would you think that?" Danny asked.

"What were you doing when I came in?"

"Good point."

"I'll see you later."

"Yeah. See ya." Danny stated.

TBC


	86. Chapter 86

"You know this could be considered stalking." Lindsay commented.

"Huh?"

"You've been watching me for over an hour. It could be considered stalking." Lindsay repeated.

"I was just wondering what you were doing." Danny told her.

"Putting my glass jigsaw back together. Witnesses said the suspect put both his hands flat up against the window to look inside before he smashed it and shot the vic. So I'm putting it back together to dust it."

"Sounds like fun." Danny pushed off the door frame.

"It's laborious." Lindsay agreed.

"Want some help?" He offered.

"Don't you have your case to work on?" Lindsay inquired.

"We're looking for a white male with AB- blood who wears something made of Alpaca."

"That's helpful."

"Yeah. I've got to wait for some results so I can help out for a while." He explained.

"Sure. Just don't cut yourself and contaminate my evidence."

"Yes ma'am." Danny replied.

CSI NY CSI NY

"I guess that's one way to make a boring job interesting." Stella commented coming up behind Mac who was watching Lindsay and Danny laugh as they pieced together the puzzle.

"Yeah."

"Doesn't Danny have a case?"

"He's waiting on a tox report." Mac replied. "There wasn't much to go on. His vic died of a burst aneurism when someone punched him once."

"Walking time bomb." She commented.

"No witnesses, a small drop of blood that wasn't the vics and an alpaca fibre."

"That's not a lot to go on." Stella agreed.

"Flack's trying to track down his movements and any suspects."

"And Danny thought he'd help out Lindsay?" Stella guessed.

"Yes."

"You don't have a problem with that?"

"No." Mac replied. "We may as well make good use of resources. Have you gotten anything that could help the case?"

"The vic would have been dead in a few months anyway." Stella replied. "Liver cancer, which had spread."

"Who kills a guy who is dying?" Mac asked.

"He had a healthy life insurance policy. Two million."

"Who is the beneficiary?" Mac inquired.

"Half goes to the wife and the other half to St Stephens."

"That's a pretty hefty bequest. How does the wife feel about half her money going to the church?"

"I was just on my way to find out." Stella replied.

"I'll come with you." Mac told her.

"Okay." Stella stated.

CSI NY CSI NY

"I think that's as good as it's going to get." Danny studied the glass puzzle they had just finished putting back together.

"Now to dust it and hope we put it back together right." Lindsay stated.

Danny's pager beeped.

"My tox results."

"Thanks for you help."

"No problem." He replied. "You want pizza for dinner?"

"Sounds good." Lindsay agreed.

"Anything specific?"

"You know what I eat." She told him. "I hope you get something more on your case."

"You too."

"If we're lucky otherwise I just spent three hours doing this for nothing."

"Be optimistic." Danny told her. "I'll see you later."

"Yes." Lindsay agreed.

TBC


	87. Chapter 87

"Lindsay."

Lindsay turned around to see Hawkes stood in the doorway.

"Hey. What are you doing here? I thought it was your day off."

"It is." He replied. "I just got home and saw on the news that some one shot at a group of cops and CSI's at a crime scene."

"And no-one called you." Lindsay realised. "We're all fine. They were blanks."

"What about the bandage?"

"Flying glass." Lindsay replied. "I'm fine. You can ask Danny he talked to the EMT because he's still not quite sure I am."

"So you're okay?"

"Everyone is fine. The people who did it are in custody."

"Are you sure?"

"Mac and Stella should be around somewhere." Lindsay stated.

"Okay." He replied.

"I'm sorry no-one she called you."

"I'm just glad everyone is okay."

"I have a dead guy who was dying of liver cancer and was shot dead." Lindsay stated.

"Who kills a guy who is dying anyway?" Hawkes asked.

"Mac and Stella found out he had a life insurance policy where his wife gets a million and so does St Stephens if he dies of natural causes."

"Cancer is unfortunately natural causes."

"The wife gets it all if he dies by unnatural means."

"Punishing God?" Hawkes guessed.

"Something like that."

"So you're thinking the wife had him killed?" Hawkes concluded.

"We don't know right now." Lindsay replied. "But it's possible. I have prints from the shooter but they don't match anything in the database."

"Where did you get prints from?" Hawkes inquired.

"He put his hands flat on the window to check the vic was inside before he broke the glass and shot him. I spent hours picking up the glass and putting it back together."

"Sounds like fun."

"It's a start." Lindsay replied. "Danny and Flack are looking for a white guy with AB- blood who wears something made of Alpaca who punched a guy once bursting his aneurysm with no witnesses."

"I'm glad I had the day off." He told her.

"It's never a dull job unless you're putting a glass window back together."

"I should go and catch up with Mac and Stella."

"Thank you for coming and checking up on me, I'm sorry we didn't call to tell you that we're okay." Lindsay apologised.

"I'm just glad you all are." He gave her a quick hug.

"I'll see you in the morning. Enjoy the rest of your day."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay dropped her purse on the table as she went through the mail when she got home.

There were a couple bills she would pay later, a couple for Danny and a postcard.

Taking the post card she went and read about her friend Holly's adventures. Holly was an archaeologist and worked in one of the big National Museums but she was forever going on digs around the world. She always send Lindsay postcards from her destinations and when she couldn't she sent her e-mails with digital pictures.

Lindsay was added the new postcard to the others when Danny arrived back.

"Pizza fresh and hot." He announced.

"Smells great." She smiled. "I'll just put this away and grab some plates and soda."

"What have you got there?" Danny inquired.

"Holly's postcards."

"Who is Holly again?" Danny asked.

"My friend who is an archaeologist."

"The one who when she's in the country works in DC." Danny recalled.

"Yeah. She's in South America on a dig. She says you're cute."

"I'm cute?" Danny questioned.

"I e-mailed her a picture." Lindsay explained. She went and tucked the album away while she went and grabbed the necessary items so they could enjoy dinner.

TBC


	88. Chapter 88

Lindsay and the guys walked up to the stadium.

"The stadium is closed." A security guard approached them.

"We're expected." Lindsay told him. "My brother is expecting us, Clay Monroe; he's one of the coaches with the Colts."

"What's your name?" The security guard asked.

"Lindsay Monroe." She replied.

"Gus." He said into his radio. "We have a Lindsay Monroe plus four here. She says Clay Monroe is expecting her, can you check?"

"_Copy that_." The radio crackled back. _"He says to ask her what she did with Kevin Lomax prom night."_

"Tell him to tell my brother that I'll tell him that when he tells me what he did with Julie Carmichael in the back of my Buick." Lindsay crossed his arms.

The security guard relayed the message.

"_He says that's his sister and to let them all back to the field._"

"Copy that." The guard handed them yellow badges he took out of his pocket. "Keep those on and right through those door and keep walking straight."

"Thank you."

"You had a Buick?" Hawkes questioned.

"For a while." Lindsay replied. "It was a really old one and kept overheating."

"And what exactly happened with Kevin Lomax?" Flack inquired.

"A lot less than he was planning on." Lindsay replied.

"Way to ruin a guy's prom night." Danny stated.

"He wasn't my date." Lindsay shrugged. "And my prom date didn't get that far either for that matter. I have standards."

"You must have lowered them to go out with Messer." Marty joked.

"Hey." Danny protested.

"Be quiet and appreciate that you actually get to step on the field." Lindsay stated.

She waited until they all stopped and took in the site with awe.

"You know this is why I support the 49ers, the Colts lousy defence." Lindsay said loudly. Everyone turned to look at her.

The players slipped off their helmets.

"Why if it isn't the lovely Lindsay Monroe?" One of them walked over.

"Hey Joe." Lindsay smiled and stepped forward and gave him a hug despite the padding. "How'd you like your move from the 49ers to the Colts?"

"I like working with the best." He replied.

"Uh huh."

"And when Clay told me you'd moved to New York, California was just too far away." He winked at her. "So are you ready to run away with me to that desert island yet?" He inquired.

"I still don't think you're wife would appreciate it." Lindsay told him. "How are the kids?"

"Good."

"Don't big brothers get hugs or introductions?" Clay walked over carrying his clipboard.

"Hey Clay." Lindsay gave her brother a hug. "I missed you."

"I missed you too kid."

"Be nice." Lindsay whispered in his ear. "Clay, I'd like you to meet, Don Flack, Danny Messer, Sheldon Hawkes and Marty Pino. Guys, this is my brother Clay and half the Colts defence."

There was a quick round of hellos.

"So you're the guy shaking up with my little sister." Clay said to Danny.

"That would be me." Danny rocked back on his heels.

"Clay be nice or I'll hijack the public address system during the game and spout of all your sordid little secrets starting with what you did with Julie Carmichael in the back of my Buick and don't think I don't know because she told me."

"You wouldn't dare."

"I'm a cop do you think anyone would try to stop me?" Lindsay countered.

"You're New York's finest are you going to let her talk to me like that?" Clay asked Danny and Flack.

"Never argue with a CSI they are some of the few people who could make you disappear without any evidence." Flack told him.

"I'm glad you've finally learnt that." Danny patted him on the back.

"What is it exactly you all do?" One of the players asked.

"Homicide detective." Flack replied.

"CSI." Danny added.

"Medical examiner." Marty told them. "He bats for both sides." He pointed to Hawkes.

"That's not how it sounds. I used to be a medical examiner now I'm a CSI." He explained.

TBC


	89. Chapter 89

"So Lindsay can you still do that back flip round off thing?" Joe inquired.

"I haven't done that in years and I'm definitely not doing it in jeans." Lindsay replied.

The guys looked at her.

"What? You knew I was a cheerleader?" She shrugged.

"Especially the time she was on top of the pyramid that crumbled." Clay said.

"Coming from a guy whose Football coach made him take ballet lessons." Lindsay crossed his arms.

"You took ballet lessons?" The players started laughing.

"Don't make fun of the guy who controls how many laps you have to run." Clay warned. "And I thought we agreed never to mention that again?"

"Anything you can throw at me twinkle toes I can throw right back." Lindsay informed him.

"You know this is why little sisters get the reputation for being annoying." Clay pointed out.

"We have to have our fun sometimes."

"I missed you kid."

"Me too." Lindsay smiled.

"Why don't you all take a seat we still have to run through some drills before the rest of the team get out here?" Clay stated. "Once practice is done you can meet everybody."

"Sounds good." Danny said.

They all went and sat in stands watching the drills.

Clay turned around and signed something to Lindsay.

"Sounds good." Lindsay agreed back.

"What did he say?" Marty inquired.

"He said when practice is over the team have to go back to the hotel for an early night. He wanted to know if we wanted to go and get a drink with him." Lindsay explained. "I agreed."

"So he knows how to sign too?"

"He knows enough to have a basic conversation." Lindsay replied. "So what do you think of my brother?" She asked Danny.

"He seems okay. He didn't try to rip my head off."

"He won't in front of company." Lindsay patted his hand.

"That's comforting."

"If he does it would be an interesting study to watch." Marty joked. "Kind of like your tiger."

"He's better at the overprotective family member speech than my Dad."

"Great." Danny muttered.

"So how long have you known Joseph Brown?" Flack inquired.

"Since I was nineteen." Lindsay replied. "It's when Clay started working for the 49ers; I went to visit when I had some time off school. It was Joe's first season in the pros. He thought it was fun to flirt with me and try and convince me to run off to a desert island with him. It's been a running joke ever since. We've been friends ever since."

"You never considered it?" Marty asked.

"Running off to a desert island with a hot football player?" Lindsay questioned. "Sure for about two seconds. But it wasn't me. He's much happier with his tall leggy blonde ex-model wife Holly. Although for a model she is the most down to earth person I've ever met. I was supposed to go their wedding but it clashed with my graduation from the police academy."

"His wife is an ex-model?" Flack questioned. "Anyone we would know?"

"That depends." Lindsay replied.

"On what?"

"How much attention you pay to the Victoria's Secret catalogue." Lindsay replied.

"She was a Victoria's Secret model?" That got Hawkes attention.

"Yes, until she had the twins. Laurie and Jack. They are the cutest kids. She kind of likes the quiet life. I get e-mails from her once in a while."

"Do you know anyone else famous you haven't mentioned?" Danny asked.

"I met a few pro-baseball players, a couple basketball players, a few guys on the Olympic hockey team and got hit on by a sports caster at Clay's wedding reception. I went a date with son of the former Governor of Montana. It's never a good idea to go out with a guy you pull over for speeding."

"Impressive."

"It also is why I have a rule about dating sport stars, rock stars and politicians." Lindsay sighed.

"Why rock stars?" Hawkes was confused.

"That's something I'd rather not discuss, not even brothers know about that. Talking of things not to mention to my brother don't mention that we got shot at or the fact that I have a tattoo."

"He doesn't know?" Danny questioned.

"No. I'd rather keep it that way." Lindsay requested.

TBC


	90. Chapter 90

"So what's she really like?" Flack asked when Lindsay had gone to the bathroom.

"She's pretty much what you see is what you get, with a few surprises thrown in, we like to think of her asa walking contradiction." Clay replied.

"We noticed." Danny sipped his beer.

"Take the fact that she was a cheerleader and in the science club no-one ever managed to do that before in our school they were two totally different social circles. Or the first break after she'd started college she came home and told our parents when she graduated she was going to become a cop."

"She's a good one." Danny said.

"We tried to convince she should join the FBI." Clay admitted. "But insisted that she wanted to be a cop."

"She's not a big fan of FBI Agents." Hawkes recalled.

"No." Clay agreed.

"So what's she like when she's drunk?" Marty inquired, he'd noticed Lindsay had ordered a soda.

"I've only ever seen her drunk once." Clay stated.

"What are we talking about?" Lindsay returned.

"You getting drunk." Danny replied.

"Only happened once and it was an accident."

"How do you 'accidentally' get drunk?" Flack inquired.

"She was eight." Clay stated.

"Eight?" Danny questioned.

"I went to the refrigerator for some cider and poured a glass."

"It happened to be Dad's hard cider and she was drunk as a skunk." Clay recalled. "It was one of the funniest things I've ever seen."

"Getting my stomach pumped wasn't that much fun." Lindsay pointed out.

"By the way were you ever going to tell me you broke your foot?" Clay inquired.

"It didn't come up." Lindsay shrugged.

"Right." Clay didn't quite believe her.

"I feel over when I wasn't looking where I was going, Danny took me to the lab, Sheldon examined my foot, Marty and Sid x-rayed it in the morgue and Don took me to the hospital to get a cast and crutches. It's fine. Besides I don't think you ever told me about every little bruise you got while you were playing football."

"That's different." Clay stated.

"It's really not." Lindsay replied. "And if you say it's because I'm your little sister I'll throw you into a wall and don't think I won't I did it to Vinnie."

"Who is Vinnie?" Clay asked.

"My cousin." Danny replied.

"What did do to make you throw him into a wall?"

"Don't ask, don't tell, don't scare the parents." Lindsay replied.

"You're really going to throw that at me?" Clay inquired.

"Hey it was your idea." Lindsay pointed out.

"This is why I'm glad I don't have sisters." Flack stated.

"Do you want mine?" Marty inquired. "She comes complete with four kids and a very annoying Chiwawa who tries to bite your ankles every time you go near it."

"I didn't know you had a sister." Lindsay said.

"Half sister." Marty explained. "And she thinks what I do will give me bad karma."

"She thinks being a medical examiner is bad karma?" Hawkes questioned.

"Desecrating the dead." Marty shrugged. "She's a strange woman, which is why I only see her on holidays."

"We've all pretty much always got along." Clay said. "We may tease each other and drive each other crazy but that's the fun part of having siblings."

"So what's it like working for a pro-football team?" Danny inquired.

"Almost as good as playing for one would have been. But I like coaching."

"Can you introduce us to the cheerleaders?" Marty inquired.

"I'm sure that can be arranged."

Lindsay rolled her eyes and fingered her necklace.

"Interesting pendant." Clay commented.

"Birthday present." Lindsay replied.

"I'm going to get another drink does anyone want anything?" Danny inquired.

"I'll go with you." Lindsay told him. "Having fun?" She inquired when they reached the bar.

"Yeah, I like your brother." Danny smiled.

"You look tired." Lindsay remarked.

"That's what you get for working the night shift so you can get the afternoon off."

"We'll finish this drink and head home." Lindsay suggested.

"We can stay if you want." He told her.

"I'm tired too. Besides Clay will need to get some sleep before the game tomorrow too."

TBC


	91. Chapter 91

"You know we didn't have to leave."

"It was getting late." Lindsay shrugged. "And I'm on call after midnight."

"That's just stupid."

"Hey it's was the way things played out so we could get the night off and tomorrow afternoon off for the game." Lindsay shrugged. "Don't make me put you into a wall." She teased.

"Sounds like fun." He stepped back against the wall, and tugged her arms so she was pressed up against him. "So what are you going to do to me now you've got me here?"

"You're incorrigible." Lindsay smiled.

"You say that like it's a bad thing." He said as his lips captured hers.

"Definitely not a bad thing."

CSI NY

"Monroe." Lindsay answered her cell a few hours later. "Yeah I'll be there in twenty minutes."

"Work?" Danny asked waking from his doze.

"Botched bodega robbery." Lindsay replied. "I've got to go." She gave him a quick kiss.

"Want me to bring you breakfast?"

"Sounds good." Lindsay agreed.

"Be careful." Danny told her.

"I know more people than you'd think get injured getting dressed but I think I'll be okay."

"You know what I meant."

"I'll be careful. I'll see you later."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey Stella." Lindsay said when she arrived at the crime scene.

"Sorry for calling you out." Stella told her.

"It's all part of the job." Lindsay shrugged.

"Did you have a good time with your brother?"

"Yes and everyone was still standing at the end of the night."

"How did you manage that?" Stella inquired.

"I told Clay that I would borrow the PA system at the game and spout his deep dark secrets out for the world to hear."

"Interesting threat."

"It worked." Lindsay shrugged. "And they got to ask their all important question."

"When can they meet the cheerleaders?" Stella guessed.

"That's the one."

"What is it with men and cheerleaders?"

"The short skirts and tight tops." Lindsay replied. "Did you know Marty's half sister doesn't approve of what he does? She thinks he's desecrating bodies."

"He puts them back together." Stella pointed out.

"He says she's a little weird."

"You might want to put on some overalls and some boots." Stella suggested.

"What happened?"

"According to witnesses the guy came in tried to buy something but didn't have enough money so went a little crazy and threw everything off the shelves when the owner went to call 911 the guy pulled out a gun and demanded all the money, the owner sprayed him in the eyes with mace and the gun went off. The owner is at the hospital with a gun shot wound to the shoulder he should be fine, the suspect fled."

"Have we got an APB out for a guy with mace in his face?"

"We have all the hospitals on alert." Stella confirmed. "Why don't you start with pictures?"

"I can manage that." Lindsay agreed. "What about surveillance cameras?"

"Too expensive."

It took hours to process the bodega.

"I smell like pasta sauce." Lindsay sighed when they finally reached the lab.

"I know what you mean. It's making me hungry."

"Danny's going to bring breakfast by later." Lindsay told her.

"What brought that on?"

"He was half asleep when he offered." Lindsay replied.

"That explains it." Stella smiled. "I'm going to check all this into evidence and then take a quick shower before we start processing."

"Works for me." Lindsay agreed.

TBC


	92. Chapter 92

"Hey." Lindsay said as she walked through the halls and ran into Danny.

"Hey. Breakfast is here."

"Smells great. You brought enough for Stella right?" She questioned.

"If you don't decide to eat enough for the whole football team." He winked at her.

"I just have to drop this off and grab Stella we'll be right there."

"Okay." Danny agreed.

"Hey Danny." Stella greeted him as she and Lindsay walked into the break room.

"Morning Stella."

"This smells good." She said.

"What smells of ground nut oil?" Danny inquired.

"Damn I thought I'd gotten all of it." Stella sniffed her shirt.

"What exactly were you doing with ground nut oil or do I not want to ask?" Danny inquired.

"He trashed the store before shooting the owner who had just sprayed him in the face with mace." Lindsay handed him the file with the photos she had just printed off. "We smelt of pasta sauce when we got back."

"That show held narrow down the suspects."

"He hasn't gone to the hospital yet." Stella stated. "But the store owner is going to be okay."

"That's good." Danny agreed. "So are you going to be okay to get out of here by 11.30? We told the guys that we'd meet them by 12.15 and you have the tickets."

"That depends." Lindsay replied.

"On what?"

"Whether you're just visiting." Lindsay took a bite of her bagel.

"Oh that's how it is, you get me to bring breakfast and make me work."

"You offered to bring breakfast." Lindsay reminded him.

"Okay I'll give you that one Montana."

"And if I do have to keep working I do have the tickets." Lindsay stated innocently.

"Okay what do you want me to do?"

Stella couldn't help but chuckle.

"You've got him well trained."

"Hey." Danny protested.

"You couldn't hold out a little longer before you gave in?" Stella inquired.

"He just wants to meet the cheerleaders as much as the others." Lindsay stated.

"Hey it's not…"

"It's okay." Lindsay patted his hand. "Professional cheerleaders don't date cops. You don't earn enough."

Stella bit her lip to hide a smile.

"And we'll be done before eleven there isn't that much left to process. We already have his fingerprints, the bullet doesn't match anything in the database and other than a big mess there wasn't much more evidence."

"He didn't cut himself smashing all that glass?"

"If he did evidence of it was obliterated by the pasta sauce and ketchup." Stella replied.

"We didn't find any blood smears or drops on anything." Lindsay expanded. "And we processed very thoroughly."

"I checked the mace, which actually is mace rather than pepper spray. So he'll need to go to a hospital."

"That's illegal." Danny pointed out.

"The guy was just shot in a robbery I think we'll deal with the fact that his mace was actually mace later." Stella suggested.

"What time is Mac coming in?" Danny inquired.

"About now." Lindsay replied noticing through the glass.

"Hey Mac." Stella called. "We've got breakfast."

"Sounds good." Mac came to join them. "Good morning Danny, Lindsay."

"Morning Mac." Lindsay smiled.

"Help yourself." Danny added.

"Thanks." Mac replied. "So what kind of case did you get that the lab smells like ground nut oil and pasta sauce."

Lindsay handed him the photographs.

"Guy got mad when he didn't have enough money to pay, trashed the place and shot the owner after the owner maced him." Stella explained.

TBC


	93. Chapter 93

"I'll be ten minutes." Lindsay told Danny when they got back to the apartment. She needed to change into something more appropriate for a football game and grab the tickets which she had stuffed in her underwear drawer.

Danny knew when Lindsay told him how long it would take her to get ready she was pretty accurate so he sat on the couch.

"So you don't think I could date a cheerleader?" Danny inquired.

"Danny, if it means that much to you I could have Mom send me my old cheerleading outfits." Lindsay told him.

"Oh really?" Danny raised his eyebrows.

"You're such a guy. I have a French maid outfit too."

"Do I even want to even know why you have a French maid outfit?" Danny asked.

"Department Halloween party."

"They have fancy dress Halloween parties in Bozeman?"

"Danny, Bozeman isn't exactly the Hicksville you think it is. It's home the Montana State University. There are quite a few people there. Not as many as there are on Manhattan or Staten Island for that matter but there are over 30,000 people. They don't have that many murders, other than the case that put me on Mac's radar, there hadn't been a murder for a few years, there are rapes, but it's mostly robberies and thefts."

"Sounds like fun."

"I worked for the county, so I worked in an area bigger than Bozeman. It was a small department we socialised."

"I think you'd have to shut down the city to invite all the cops to a party." Danny stated.

"I noticed." She came out of the bedroom wearing a pair of jeans and a tight t-shirt. She grabbed her denim jacket from the back of the chair and slipped it on.

"Got the tickets?" Danny inquired.

"I've got them somewhere safe." Lindsay assured him grabbing her purse.

Danny's cell phone rang.

"Messer."Danny answered.

"_Hey Danny, it's Don. I was just checking where you wanted us to meet you."_

Danny named a location.

"But you have to be nice to her; she's threatening to withhold the tickets." He glanced at Lindsay.

"_Can't you talk her into it?" _Flack inquired.

"I got conned into to helping out at the lab for a couple hours I think I did my part."

Lindsay snatched the phone from Danny.

"Don, it's Lindsay. We're just leaving, we'll meet you there."

"_Okay." _He agreed. "See you soon."

Lindsay hung up and handed Danny back his phone.

"Let's go." She told him.

"After you Miss Monroe."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey guys." Lindsay said when she and Danny walked over to meet them.

"So you didn't kill him on the way over." Marty joked.

"I had enough of big messes for one day." Lindsay replied. "Now I'm only going to say this once. Clay was only able to get us decent tickets because they are on the Colts side. So you can't go cheering for the other side without some stupid overenthusiastic fan getting a little mad."

"We get it." Hawkes assured her.

Lindsay pulled the tickets out her bra and started handing them out.

Danny looked at her.

"What?" She shrugged. "I told you they were somewhere safe."

"Clay's right about you."

"What exactly did my brother say?" Lindsay inquired.

"That you're a walking contradiction." Flack told her.

"Oh that." Lindsay said. "It's one of his nicer descriptions."

"That's all you have to say?" Marty inquired.

"People would be dull if they were all straight forward." She shrugged. "We'd better go if we want to get through security before the game starts."

Danny just smiled and followed her.

They hit the concession stand before they went to their seats.

"Lindsay Monroe?" A man was waiting for them when they arrived. He had on a t-shirts with a Colts logo on it. Lindsay recognised the shirt as one worn by the behind the scenes team.

"Yes."

"Clay sent me to give you these." He handed her five passes. "It will get you…"

"Thanks." Lindsay interrupted. "Tell the guys to have a good game."

"Enjoy the game." He told her.

TBC


	94. Chapter 94

"Hey where's Lindsay?" Danny asked noticing she had left her seat at half time.

"Maybe she went to the bathroom?" Hawkes suggested.

"Wouldn't she have mentioned it?" Danny inquired.

"It did get a little loud when they scored." Marty pointed out.

"Would make an interesting missing persons call. 'Yes, we'd like to report a missing detective. Well she was sat next to us and we didn't notice her disappear.'" Flack joked.

Danny looked at him.

"I'm sure she's fine. She can handle herself." Flack assured him. "But I've got to take a leak."

Flack slid passed them to head to the bathroom.

Danny, Marty and Hawkes looked for Lindsay.

"Look who I found." Flack said when he returned ten minutes later having missed most of the half time show.

Flack was holding a tray of sodas and Lindsay had some hotdogs.

"Where did you disappear to?" Danny asked.

"Bathroom." Lindsay replied. "I learnt a long time ago that if you actually want to go you have to go before half time otherwise you get stuck in a long queue and the rest I would say was obvious." She handed out her spoils.

"You couldn't have mentioned where you were going."

"Danny I have two older brothers I don't need another one and I did tell you where I was going you just weren't paying attention."

"You did?"

"Yes." Lindsay nodded. "So guys are you having fun?"

"This is great and they are great seats." Marty told her.

"I got to watch a 49ers game from the owner's box once." Lindsay told him. "That's was pretty cool."

"The owner's box?"

"Nice guy. Clay arranged it."

"It's nice to have friends in high places." Flack joked.

"What's the score?" Lindsay inquired.

"16-3 to the Colts."

"Clay will be pleased." Lindsay smiled.

"Only because his guys are winning." Danny pointed out.

"Clay's more of the' if they put on a good defence then he's done his job' viewpoint."

"He doesn't like it if they win?" Flack asked.

"He loves winning, but if they don't he likes that they put on a good defence." She explained.

"Interesting approach." Hawkes commented.

"The head coach yells, Clay prefers a more supportive method, in addition to yelling when necessary."

"Just out of curiosity." Marty said. "How did the head cheerleader end up with the baseball pitcher rather than the quarterback?"

"The quarterback had a girlfriend since he started kindergarten. They got married at 18, have 4 kids and he coaches the high school football team."

"They've been together since kindergarten?" Hawkes questioned.

"We do things differently in the country." She winked at him. "And they had a spat in the third grade after someone dared him to cut off one of her pigtails, but that only lasted about two weeks."

"That's just…" Marty couldn't pick a word.

"Besides the pitcher looked a lot cuter in his uniform and when you're seventeen that's all that counts."

"Why don't women tell you that when you're seventeen?" Hawkes asked.

"Because they are 17 too." Lindsay replied. "Besides why make it easy for you?"

"That's why women drive men crazy." Hawkes stated.

"Dad says that if women were meant to be understood they would come with an instruction manual or be able to be tamed with sugar cubes like horses."

"The first part of that I've heard before." Flack said. "I'm guessing the second part is just a country thing."

"Have you ever ridden a horse?" Lindsay inquired.

"The closest I've been to a horse is walking past one in Central Park." Flack admitted.

"Dad has a whole series of theories on women and horses." Lindsay stated. "Fortunately he keeps most of them between him and horses."

TBC


	95. Chapter 95

"Big kids." Lindsay muttered as she watched the guys interact with the cheerleaders.

"What was that?" A guy who was stood behind her asked.

"Sorry." Lindsay apologised.

"You obviously have passes to be down here." He noticed the pass hanging around her neck.

"The guys wanted to meet the cheerleaders so my brother arranged passes."

"Who is your brother?" The guy inquired.

"Clay Monroe." Lindsay replied.

"Ah that explains it." He said. "David Kensington, I'm with the Giants."

"Nice to meet you." Lindsay smiled.

"So you're a Colts fan."

"49ers." Lindsay corrected. "But I haven't seen my brother in a while and since he was in town and offered to get us tickets it was a stupid opportunity to miss and the guys wanted to meet the cheerleaders."

"You couldn't find some female friends to bring?" David asked.

"The guys are Giants or Jets fans so it seemed appropriate to bring them. Besides we had a tough enough time trying to make sure we all had the day off."

"Why what do you do?"

"NYPD." Lindsay replied.

"You're a cop?" David questioned.

"Detective with the crime lab." Lindsay confirmed.

"You're the prettiest cop I've seen."

"Thanks." Lindsay blushed. "But I look terrible I've been up since two with work."

"They make you work nights?"

"Crime doesn't happen 9-5." Lindsay pointed out.

"True. So you didn't tell me your name." David said.

"Lindsay Monroe." She introduced herself.

"It's nice to meet you Lindsay. Do you want to come and see the view from one of the suites?"

"We're meeting Clay in a few minutes so it's better if we stay here."

"The offer is always open."

CSI NY

"Hey Danny." Flack walked over to him.

"Yeah?" Danny said.

"I think someone is putting the moves on your girl." Flack informed him.

Danny looked over to where David was talking to Lindsay.

"Thanks." Danny patted him the arm before he walked over.

"Danny this is David Kensington, he works for the Giants." Lindsay introduced them.

"Danny Messer, NYPD." Danny shook his hand.

"Nice too meet you." David replied.

"David was just offering to show us the view from one of the suites but I was explaining that we were meeting Clay soon." Lindsay explained.

"That's nice of you." Danny told him guess David's offered had only extended to Lindsay.

"So are you done flirting with the cheerleaders?" Lindsay inquired.

"I wasn't flirting." Danny insisted.

"You were flirting, you do it all the time but I don't think you notice anymore."

"Jealous Montana?" He asked.

"Do I look jealous?" Lindsay inquired.

"Montana?" David questioned.

"Annoying nickname." Lindsay explained.

Danny stepped in and kissed her.

"I should be going." David excused himself. "It was nice to meet you both."

"Very caveman." Lindsay stated.

"What?" Danny asked innocently.

"Kissing me to stake your claim."

"I wasn't staking a claim I just kissed you because I wanted to."

"And I'm quitting my job to go to Las Vegas to try and make it as a showgirl." Lindsay crossed her arms.

"Get me opening night tickets." He winked at her. "You know you're cute when you're being sarcastic."

Lindsay tried to stop herself smiling.

"You're not really mad are you?" Danny guessed.

"No. Just don't go all caveman on me or the next thing I know you'll be clubbing me over the head and dragging me back to your cave by my hair."

"I'll try to refrain from doing that."

"Good now watch Marty getting shot down." Lindsay told him.

TBC


	96. Chapter 96

Since Clay and the team were leaving that night they didn't get to spend that much time with him before he had to go.

"Be good." Clay hugged her. "And be careful."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

"Say hello to everyone for me." Lindsay requested.

"Always. I'll call you next week." Clay told her.

"You know the number."

"Take good care of her." Clay instructed Danny.

"Of course. It was nice to have met you."

"You too. If you hurt her…"

"I know the defensive line." Danny stated. "I've been warned."

"I can take care of myself." Lindsay insisted.

"Will you be home for Christmas?" Clay asked.

"If I can get the time off." Lindsay replied. "I wouldn't miss Mom's Christmas dinner if I can help it."

Once Clay was gone Lindsay and Danny walked over to join the others.

"We were just talking about going to do something else." Flack told them.

"You guys do what you want but I'm going home to bed. I've been up since two and I need some sleep." Lindsay replied.

"I drive you home." Danny said.

"I can drive home by myself. Have fun." Lindsay started to walk away.

"One minute." Danny told the guys and jogged after her to catch. "Hey."

"Danny go have fun I'm fine." Lindsay insisted.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure. I just want to go home have a bath and get some sleep."

"Okay." Danny agreed.

"I'll call you when I get home if it will make you feel better." Lindsay offered.

"That would be good." Danny nodded. "I love you."

"I love you. Just don't do anything that will get you arrest."

"Now why would I do something like that?" Danny asked.

"Just remember I've met your mother." Lindsay reminded him.

"Driving safely."

"Yes _Dad."_

Danny went back to join the guys.

"Is she okay?" Hawkes asked.

"Just tired. She only got a couple hours sleep and then spent the rest of the night processing a bodega that was covered pasta sauce and ketchup. I've seen the pictures it wasn't pretty."

"You've seen the pictures?" Flack questioned.

"I had breakfast at the lab, with Lindsay, Stella and Mac."

"How come we weren't invited?" Hawkes asked.

"Mac and Stella were just there and I'd bought enough food so they ate with us." He shrugged. "Besides I didn't think you'd want waking up at 7 in the morning to come to work to eat breakfast."

"Good call."

"So what is the plan boys?" Danny rubbed his hands together.

"We thought we'd figure that out on the way out of Jersey." Marty explained.

"Sounds like a well thought out plan." Danny remarked.

"If Lindsay was coming we'd probably do something different." Flack pointed out.

"She'd have been up for most things." Danny stated.

"I wouldn't mention that to her brother." Marty suggested.

"There is a whole list of things I'm not supposed to tell her family including Becky is still dating her professor and stayed in Boston to be with him rather than to work on her thesis like she told her parents or the fact that she helps out on FBI cases."

"Is that a part of their 'don't ask, don't tell, don't scare the parents' policy?" Marty asked.

"I would think so." Danny said.

Flack unlocked the car using the remote and they all piled in.

"Home James." Hawkes prompted from the back.

"Do you want to walk?" Flack inquired.

"No."

"Then figure out where we're going?" Flack suggested.

TBC


	97. Chapter 97

Lindsay woke up to the sound of the phone ringing incessantly.

"Monroe." She grabbed the phone still half asleep.

"_Monnnnnnnnntannnnnnnnnaaaaaaaaaa."_ She heard loudly in her ear.

"Danny?"

"_I love you."_

"God you're drunk." Lindsay sat up.

"_A little bit."_

"Are you all drunk?"

"_They took the keys." _Danny admitted.

"Good." Lindsay sighed. "Where are you?"

Danny named a bar.

"Stay where you are, I'll be there as soon as I can." She threw back the covers and started climbing out of bed.

"_Thank you."_

Lindsay hung up and started getting dressed.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay walked into the bar and looked around until she spotted them in a booth in the back. She strode over.

"Lindsay!" Hawkes announced.

"Don't any of you know any better?" Lindsay asked crossing her arms.

"You want to join us?" Marty inquired offering her his glass.

"No, I'm going to take you all home and you're all going to sleep it off and have bad hangovers since you're all due at work by 8 tomorrow." She turned on her heel and walked over to the bar.

"What can I get you?" The bartender asked.

"Nothing." Lindsay replied. "You took their car keys? I'm going to take them home."

"One of them actually handed them to me after their second drink and told me not to give them back." The bartender corrected.

"I'm here to take them home." She flashed him her ID.

"They called a cop to take them home?" The bartender questioned.

"Two of them are cops and the other two are doctors. They should all know better."

He grabbed the keys from behind the bar and handed them to her.

"Do you need some help getting them to the car?" He inquired.

"No I'm good thanks. Do you they owe anything?"

"No they covered their bill."

"Thank you." She pushed away from the bar and walked back to the table. "Okay let's go."

"What?" Danny asked.

Lindsay simply grabbed all the glasses and set them on another empty table.

"No drinks, time to go."

Lindsay managed to get them all out of the bar and to where they had parked the car.

She dropped Hawkes and Marty off first and then went to Flack's apartment.

She accompanied him upstairs to make sure he got inside alright and wrote a note.

"I'm taking your car, I'll drive it to the lab tomorrow and you can come and pick it up." She told him.

"Okay." He was too drunk to care.

Lindsay left after making sure he was lying on the couch.

Danny was still sat in the car.

"Why did you have to get so drunk?" Lindsay asked.

"Why not?"

"It kills your liver." She stated. "You can't stand up straight by yourself..." She paused. "Do I need to continue?"

"No."

CSI NY CSI NY

"What did you do to Danny and Hawkes?" Stella inquired the next morning.

"I didn't do anything to them, they did it to themselves. Flack and Marty will be as bad. They decided to go out after the game and all got drunk. I went home to get some sleep until Danny called me to go and pick them up, which is why I have Flack's car and keys."

"At least they didn't attempt to drive home."

"Flack gave his car keys to the bartender after he'd had his second drink." Lindsay explained.

"At least they were responsible."

"I could have done without the drunken phone call."

"So how loud were you this morning?" Stella inquired.

"I put headphones on Danny and cranked the volume up and played Achy Breaky Heart. I don't think he likes Billy Ray Cyrus."

"That's his fault, he should know better than getting drunk when they have to be at work early the next morning."

TBC


	98. Chapter 98

"How are you doing?" Hawkes asked Danny.

"Why did we drink so much?" Danny groaned.

"It seemed liked a good idea at the time."

"It pissed Lindsay off having to come and pick us up."

"How much?" Hawkes inquired.

"I woke up to Achy Breaky Heart blasting in my ears." Danny replied.

"Ouch." Hawkes pulled a face.

"Yeah." Danny sighed.

"Morning." Flack walked in.

"How's the head?" Hawkes inquired.

"Shots are not a good idea." Flack stated.

"We noticed." Danny told him.

"Have you seen Lindsay?" Flack inquired.

"Come to get your car back?" Danny guessed.

"It's good that I found her note before I reported it missing."

"Apparently she did tell you she was taking it. But you told her to keep it and then made an inappropriate remark."

"What did I say?" Flack asked.

"I don't know she wouldn't tell me."

"Great." He muttered.

"Don't worry she knows you didn't mean it."

"She was talking to Stella a while ago." Hawkes told him.

"Thanks." Flack said.

They continued to talk for a few minutes.

"Hawkes." Lindsay entered the room. "We've got a case."

"I'll grab my kit."

"Lindsay…" Flack started.

"Keys." She pulled them out her pocket and tossed them to him.

"About last night, if I said anything."

"Don't worry about it. At least you're a drunk who knows how to keep his hands to himself. It's right in the back row of the parking lot, fourth from the corner."

"Thanks." Flack stated.

"I've got to go." She left humming Achy Breaky Heart.

Flack looked at Danny.

"Her idea of a wake up call." Danny stated.

CSI NY CSI NY

"This is why you shouldn't base jump." Hawkes said as they stood looking a man with a broken neck attached to a parachute dangling from a tree.

"It's an adrenaline rush, and you can't exactly jump out of a small plane given the restricted airspace." Lindsay pointed out.

"Let me guess you did a parachute jump?" Hawkes guessed.

"No. But I had a friend who did."

"If I'm on a plane I want to be safely strapped into my seat and stay that way until we land."

"Most people do."

"How much longer on the cherry picker?" Hawkes asked one of the officers on scene.

"Ten minutes, they're stuck in traffic." He replied.

"Where do you think he jumped from?" Lindsay asked looking to the sky scrappers all around them.

"Probably the tallest one." Hawkes suggested. "But he could have flown quite a way."

"Getting a photograph and canvassing security in the buildings might be a good idea."

"It's a plan." Hawkes agreed.

"I'm going to look around."

"I'll start with pictures from here."

TBC


	99. Chapter 99

The next month went quickly as the lab was extremely busy.

Lindsay walked happily through the halls of the lab towards her office to grab a file.

When she arrived she found a brown paper package sat on her desk.

She looked around and then looked at the package closer.

It was address to her care of the lab, with a Jackson, Mississippi return address. Lindsay didn't know anyone in Mississippi.

She picked up the package and shook it, it rattled slightly. Her curiosity got the better of her and she pulled off the paper. She started to open the inner box when it started to smoke.

"Crap." Lindsay's gut instinct took over. The ballistics lab was near her office she carried the box at arms length. "Everyone out!" She yelled as she walked into the room.

"What?" The techs asked.

"Out and someone pull the fire alarm."

Lindsay carried the package over and dropped it into one of the tanks of water. She knew she was potentially destroying evidence but at that moment making sure the lab didn't blow up was more important.

She quickly left the room and pulled the door shut and door.

"What's going on?" Danny ran over to her.

"Don't touch me and we need to call the bomb squad."

"What?" Danny was confused.

"Lindsay." Mac came over. "What's going on?"

"There was a package on my desk with a return address in Mississippi I opened it, the brown paper is on my desk, I opened it and it started to smoke, so I dumped it in the water, I know it could destroy evidence. So can we move away and call the bomb squad?"

"They're evacuating now." Mac said. "You need to go through decontamination just in case."

"I know." Lindsay sighed.

CSI NY CSI NY

The building was cordoned off while the bomb squad went inside to see what was inside the package Lindsay had received.

Lindsay was shivering dressed only in a jumpsuit, her hair damp from where she had been through the decontamination shower.

Danny was rubbing her arms trying to keep her warm, he would have give her his jacket but he'd left it inside.

Stella and Hawkes arrived back from their scene and were stopped. Stella secured the car and told one of the officers to stand beside it so they didn't lose possession of their evidence and they ducked under the tape.

"What's going on?" Stella came over.

"Lindsay got send a package that started smoking." Danny explained. "The bomb squad are in their checking it out now."

"Are you okay?" Hawkes asked.

"I'm freezing." Lindsay replied.

"She had to go through decontamination just in case." Danny added.

"Maybe this will help." Flack came over and put his long coat over her shoulders.

"Thanks." Lindsay wrapped the coat around herself.

"I heard what happened." Flack said. "Do you know who sent you the package?"

"There was a name but there was a return address." Lindsay told him the address. "In Jackson, Mississippi."

"That's the Jackson crime lab." Stella said.

"Mac's calling them now." Danny stated.

"Do you know anyone there?" Flack inquired.

"No." Lindsay replied. "The brown paper is on my desk. I dumped it in one of the water tanks in ballistics."

"That's smart." Hawkes said.

"It will destroy evidence."

"It would stop it smoking." Stella pointed out.

"No-one sent you anything from Jackson." Mac walked over having finished his call.

"I didn't think they did." Lindsay replied.

TBC


	100. Chapter 100

"Lindsay I need you to think for a second." Mac said.

"Okay."

"Did the package have the post office stamp on it?" Mac asked.

"Yes." Lindsay replied.

"Don, Danny why don't you take her to one of the café's down the street and get her something to help her warm up."

"My purse is inside." Lindsay said.

"Don't worry I've got money." Flack told her.

"Come on Montana, let's go and get you some tea." Danny said.

"You really think that someone sent her a bomb?" Stella asked Mac.

"The bomb squad say it's a bomb, they're making sure it's defused right now."

"Why would anyone send Lindsay a bomb?" Hawkes asked. "She wouldn't hurt anyone."

"I don't know. But we need to call the FBI."

"It got sent through the mail so it's a federal case." Stella connected the dots.

"Exactly."

Mac went to call the FBI, while Stella and Hawkes stood in the middle of the street looking up at their building.

"Who sends a bomb through the mail that starts smoking first?" Hawkes asked.

"Someone who didn't want to kill her." Stella guessed. "It would give her a warning."

"True."

CSI NY CSI NY

Flack came back and gave Lindsay a cup of hot tea with sugar in it.

"Here drink this."

"Thanks." Lindsay wrapped her hands around the cup grateful for the heat. Despite being wrapped in Flack's coat and inside she was still freezing.

"Are you okay?" Danny asked.

"You try having to strip off and take a cold decontamination shower in 40 degree weather and then only being a given a jumpsuit to put on and having stand around with wet hair." Lindsay snapped. "Sorry, I'm so cold."

"It's okay." Danny told her.

"Who'd want to send me a bomb?" Lindsay asked.

"We don't know it was a bomb." Flack pointed out.

"It was bomb or what's the technical term an 'improvised explosive device'."

"It would have started smoking if they wanted you to blow up." Flack suggested.

"Let's not discuss blowing things up." Danny said glaring at Flack.

CSI NY CSI NY

"All clear." The bomb squad announced as they exited the building.

"What have we got?" Mac walked over.

"There was trigger which was supposed to set it off when it was opened. The smoke was an accidental by product of a loose wire." He explained to Mac. "It was quick thinking dropping it in water; it stopped it exploding by short circuiting it."

"I think it was more a gut reaction to the smoke than a thought out plan." Mac stated.

"Whoever opened it was very lucky."

"It was sent through the mail." Mac told him.

"It was unstable they're lucky it didn't go off before. You need to call the Feds."

"They're on their way."

"You need to tape off ballistics and anything that came into contact with the package."

"Detective Monroe left the brown paper the package was wrapped up in in her office."

"Close that off too."

"She's already been through decontamination." Mac added.

"Then you should be okay."

TBC


	101. Chapter 101

The building began to refill with people with the exception of two areas it was back to work as usual.

Mac and Stella processed Lindsay and Danny's office and the ballistics lab.

"Detective Taylor?" A man in a dark suit approached the taped off room.

"Yes."

"Special Agent Howard FBI." He showed Mac his ID. "I've been informed that you had an IED sent to one of your detectives in the mail."

"Yes. The return address is the crime lab in Jackson."

"Mississippi?" Howard questioned. "Do they know anyone there?"

"No and I called them they have no idea who sent it."

"What can you tell me about the IED?"

"It was unstable, a wire had come loose which is why it started smoking rather than exploding like it was intended to do. She also dumped it in water which short circuited the rest of it so it didn't explode. The bomb squad gave us the all clear."

"I'm going to need to talk to Detective…" He paused.

"Monroe." Mac supplied.

"Detective Monroe."

"She's in a café down the street with Detectives Flack and Messer. She went through decontamination just in case and is obviously cold due to the temperature outside."

"I take it you're going to want to process the evidence."

"We have the facilities." Mac said. "And it will be quicker than taking it to your lab."

"Here's my number." He handed Mac his card. "Call me if you find anything before I get back."

"Of course."

CSI NY CSI NY

"An FBI Agent is on his way over here to talk to you." Flack told Lindsay as he sat down after getting off the phone with Mac.

"Great." Lindsay muttered.

"It will all work out fine." Danny squeezed her hand.

"So what are you doing for Thanksgiving?" Lindsay asked hoping to change the subject temporarily.

"Dinner with the parents." Flack replied. "What about you?"

"I have to work." Lindsay stated.

"How did you manage to get lumbered with working Thanksgiving?" Flack inquired.

"I want to go home for a few days over Christmas, so I told Mac I'd work Thanksgiving and New Years. I get four days off."

"Are you going too?" Flack asked Danny.

"I wasn't invited." Danny replied.

"I just assumed you were doing something with your family." Lindsay said. "If you can get the time off I'd love it if you want to come and see Montana."

"I'll talk to Mac."

"Just don't get lost in the boondocks." Flack joked.

"It's not that bad." Lindsay insisted. "As long as we don't get snowed in."

"I guess you don't have nice trucks to plough the streets."

"Oh we have snowploughs we also got a lot of snow days. There's great skiing."

"Skiing?" Danny repeated.

"Bozeman is in a valley." Lindsay explained. "I'll break you in gently try a sled."

"Sounds fun." Danny said not with great enthusiasm.

"He doesn't get out of the city much." Flack told her.

"Trust me it will be nice to be back where someone isn't murdered every day."

"What's that like?" Flack inquired.

"Slow work for a homicide detective." Lindsay replied. "I'm going to the bathroom before that guy gets here. Can you get me some more tea?"

"Sure." Danny replied.

TBC


	102. Chapter 102

"Detective Messer, Detective Flack?" A man approached their table.

"Yes?" Danny looked up.

"I'm Special Agent Howard FBI." He showed them his ID. "I'm looking for Detective Monroe."

"She's in the bathroom." Flack replied.

"So it was a real bomb."

"From what I understand she was very lucky only a loose wire stood between her and it blowing up in her face as soon as she opened it."

"Danny." Flack said.

Danny's gaze moved to see Lindsay stood behind Howard pale and run back towards the bathroom.

"Montana." Danny was quickly out of his seat and running after her not caring that it was the women's bathroom.

"I thought her name was Lindsay." Howard said to Flack.

"It is. It's his nickname for her." Flack explained. "Give her a few minutes to regain her composure."

"I know how to interview witnesses Detective."

"I wasn't saying that as a Detective I was saying that as her friend."

Lindsay returned a few minutes later looking slightly calmer.

"Guys, can you give us a few minutes I want to get this over with and get back to work." Lindsay requested.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea." Howard said.

"I have a job to do and I can't let some psycho wanting to blow me up stop me. People deserve justice."

"We'll be right over there." Danny told her and kissed her forehead. "Yell if you need us."

Flack put a supportive hand on her arm before he went to join Danny at a table a few feet away so they could observe.

"What do you want to know?" Lindsay as she sat down.

"Tell me what happened from when you first discovered the package."

Lindsay gave him a description of what happened in as much detail as she could remember.

"And you just dumped it in a take of water."

"It was smoking." Lindsay pointed out. "It seemed the best solution."

"Have you had any death threats?"

"I'm a cop of course I've had death threats." Lindsay replied.

"Any credible threats?"

"Once a long time ago. A guy sent me a bullet with my name carved into it after he got put in jail. He's in maximum security in Montana State Prison." Lindsay explained.

"Nothing else?"

"The guy who your colleagues are supposed to finding who cut off all those people's heads a few months ago dosed me with Rohypnol and sent me a not bragging about it."

"Have you heard from him since?" Howard inquired.

"No but he sent a letter to the CSI in Seattle who got dosed and crashed her car."

"Do you have a description?"

"I lost 20 hours, I don't even remember going to any of the scenes that day. I had one flash brown hat, brown trench coast, brown gloves and a beard. But he was more of a hack peoples' heads over with a guillotine because he likes the sounds and dump them in a clean alley next to a garbage can." Lindsay explained.

"Had any problems with suspects?"

"Just the normal. No-one who would send me a bomb."

"I'm going to need a list of anyone you've had a conflict with in the last six months."

"That could take a while and most of them are in jail." Lindsay pointed out.

"We're going to need to take your fingerprints." Howard told him.

"I'm a cop who investigates crime scenes my fingerprints and DNA are in the system and if Mac and Stella are investigating they are already know that."

"Good, I need your contact information."

"Can I borrow pen?" Lindsay grabbed her napkin. "That's my desk extension, but my office is a crime scene. That's my cell phone and pager but the decontamination people have that with my gun and that's my home number. That's the crime labs number they should know how to track me down." Lindsay pushed it across the table. "Can I go now?" She inquired.

"You don't seem too concerned that some tried to kill you."

"It's your job to figure that out and I'm more concerned that a bomb could get through the mail system without someone x-raying it." She paused. "Look I'd like to go back to the lab dry my hair put on some clean clothes and solve my case."

"Fine I'll talk to you again soon and I'll need that list."

"Okay." Lindsay replied.

TBC


	103. Chapter 103

Danny tried to convince Lindsay to go home but she insisted she was going back to work. When she got back to the lab she handed Flack his coat back and headed straight to the locker room.

She changed into some clean warm clothes and grabbed her hair dryer out of the bottom of her locker and plugged it in.

She used the sound to drown out her tears.

When her hair was finally dry, she put the hairdryer away pulled her hair up into a messy ponytail and washed her face while trying to come up with an excuse for her puffy eyes.

Danny was leaning against the wall of the locker room waiting for her.

"Are you okay?" Danny inquired.

"I'm fine." Lindsay sighed.

"You sure?"

"Danny, can we just leave it I'd like to just get back to work. I have to try and get my phone, pager and gun back from the decontamination people since we know I didn't get contamination with anything."

"Okay." Danny agreed knowing pushing wouldn't be a good idea.

CSI NY CSI NY

It took Lindsay an hour to get her items back.

"Stella." Lindsay stood in the door to the lab where Stella was trying to find fingerprints from the inside of the brown paper since the outside would have been touched by numerous people.

"Hey Lindsay, how are you doing?"

"I'm definitely warmer now." Lindsay replied.

"Did you talk to the FBI guy?"

"Yes. He seems to be under the impression it was the guillotine guy."

"Doesn't seem to fit his pattern." Stella stated.

"That's what I told him. I have to make a list of anyone who could have a grudge against me."

"That could take a while."

"I'll do it later. I need your help."

"With what?" Stella asked.

"I originally went to my office to get a file. It's still on my desk and office is a…"

"Crime scene." Stella finished for her.

"Any chance of getting it?" Lindsay inquired.

"Just tell me where it is and stand here with this and I'll grab it."

"It's the second file in the stack on the right hand side." Lindsay explained.

"I'll be right back." Stella told her.

"Thanks Stella."

…

"Stella." Mac walked into the lab looking at the file.

"She'll be back in a minute." Lindsay told him.

"Lindsay." He looked up. "How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine. It took a while to convince them to give me my gun back but I'm good."

"Good." Mac said.

"I talked to the FBI Agent, gave him my contact details and I'm going to make him a list of anyone who could have a grudge."

"That could be a long list." Mac said.

"I know."

"Where's Stella?" Mac inquired.

"She went to get me a file from my desk since I can't actually go in my office." Lindsay explained.

"You could take the rest of the day off." Mac suggested.

"I'd rather be working." Lindsay stated. "But thanks for the offer."

"Okay." Mac agreed.

TBC


	104. Chapter 104

Lindsay cut out of the lab as soon as she could but rather than go home she went for a walk.

With no destination in mind Lindsay just wondered the streets of Manhattan.

She stopped when she got drawn to a building and slowly walked inside and sat down.

She stayed there for a while in silence.

"Can I help you?" A man approached.

"Sorry Father." Lindsay apologised. "I was just thinking."

"This is a good place to reflect. Would you like me to leave you alone?" The priest inquired.

"Actually if you have a few minutes." Lindsay said.

"Of course." He sat in the pew in front of her. "What seems to be troubling you?"

"Someone tried to blow me up today." Lindsay stated bluntly.

"Someone tried to blow you up?" He repeated.

"They sent me a bomb in the mail; I guess you'd say by the grace of God, a wire came loose so it didn't go off as soon as I opened it."

"What did the police say?" He asked.

"I am the police." Lindsay sighed before explaining. "I'm a detective with the crime lab. They're doing what they can, the FBI have to officially have the case since it came through the mail it makes federal."

"How are you feeling?"

"I don't know." Lindsay replied honestly. "I froze outside for a while after they made me go through decontamination just in case. I was interrogated by an FBI Agent. I cried for a while, managed to solve my case and then just left and walked until I got here."

"Maybe you were looking for answers." The priest suggested.

"Maybe." Lindsay paused. "It really is beautiful in here."

"You're not Catholic are you?" The priest guessed.

"Baptist." Lindsay admitted. "Although I haven't had time to go to church since I moved to New York. This is okay isn't it?"

"I like to think that God is grateful when any of his children want to talk to him. It doesn't matter where or which denomination you are."

"If it helps any my boyfriend is Catholic. Very very lapsed catholic but he's still catholic."

"I don't think that matters." He told her. "But I appreciate the thought."

"Why would anyone send me a bomb?"

"I can't answer that for you." The priest told her. "But think of it this way it wasn't your time to go, you're obviously doing good work and he wants that to continue."

"But bad things happen to good people look at 9/11 and the tsunami."

"Bad things do happen to good people and sometimes things happen against God's plan but major events like that bring us together and unite people. In general it brings out the best in people. Even on a smaller scale like with your job, you try to give people an answer that's a good thing."

"I know." Lindsay sighed. Her cell phone went off. "I'm sorry I didn't realise it was still on." She checked the caller ID. "Danny." She answered. "I'm talking to a priest; I'll call you back later." She hung up and switched her phone off. "Sorry."

"Someone's cell phone went off in the middle of a funeral a few days ago, that was a little more ill timed than an empty church."

"I'd bet."

"So shall we discuss this further?" Lindsay inquired.

CSI NY CSI NY

Danny was sat on the computer running a search.

"I thought you were leaving." Hawkes entered the room.

"I'm trying to find a Catholic church." Danny replied.

"Feeling the need for a little more divine intervention today?" He inquired.

"When Lindsay left she told some she was going for a walk." Danny explained.

"Why does that mean you need a Catholic church? Isn't Lindsay a Baptist?"

"Yes. But when I called her to see where she was and if she wanted me to pick her up she said she would call me back because she was talking to a priest."

"Maybe she felt like she needed a divine intervention." Hawkes joked.

"I'm trying to figure out which are the nearest Catholic churches and I'm going to see if I can find her."

"Perhaps she needs a little time alone." Hawkes suggested.

"I'm not going to interrupt; I just need to check she's okay."

"Okay. You know her better than I do."

TBC


	105. Chapter 105

The priest looked up when the door opened.

The man who walked in crossed himself like any good Catholic; a flash of something gold caught the priest's eye.

"Do you know a detective with blondie brown hair, 5'9 and glasses?" He asked.

Lindsay turned and looked over her shoulder as she saw Danny slide into a pew at the back of the church.

"That's Danny." Lindsay replied. She beckoned him over. "Danny this is Father Hannigan. Father, Detective Danny Messer."

"It's nice to meet you Father." Danny told him.

"You too Detective." Father Hannigan replied. "I understand you're a lapsed Catholic."

"Extremely." Danny replied glancing at Lindsay.

"If you ever feel the need to come to confession or for spiritual guidance you're more than welcome."

"Thanks." Danny replied. "I can just go and sit back over there if I'm interrupting."

"It's okay." Lindsay said. "I've taken up enough of Father Hannigan's time."

"If you ever need to talk again please come back." He told Lindsay. "I'm around most of the time and should be available if it's not at the time of services."

"I might take you up on that. Thank you." Lindsay replied.

"He does know you're not Catholic right?" Danny asked as they walked out.

"It came up." Lindsay replied.

"So how did you end up talking to a priest anyway?"

"I went for a walk and got drawn to the building. He came up and asked if I was okay and if I wanted to talk so I told him about the bomb."

"Are you okay?"

"A little better." Lindsay admitted. "I'm starving though, I missed lunch."

"Then let's get you something to eat." Danny said.

"How did you find me?" Lindsay asked.

"You said you were talking to the priest and someone mentioned that you'd gone for a walk so I just checked all the Catholic churches in walking distance of the lab."

"Police logic."

"Hawkes thought I should leave you alone." Danny admitted.

"I'm glad you came."

"Mac says you can talk to the department counsellor." Danny suggested.

"Trust me what Father Hannigan said was more helpful than anything the department counsellor would say."

"What did he say?"

"That's between me and the priest." Lindsay replied.

"Okay." Danny wasn't going to push it. "So what are you in the mood for?"

"Tacos."

"Tacos it is."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay sat on the couch wrapped tightly in a blanket. The TV was on low so as not to wake Danny who was asleep sprawled out on the bed.

Lindsay had woken up just after 4 am after a nightmare where lab had blown up with everyone in it except her. She had tried to go back to sleep with no luck.

Lindsay wasn't up to watching anything that involved keeping her attention so she was watching on of the shopping channels. Some bubbly presenter was trying to convince her to buy something she had no interest in.

It was almost 6 before Danny woke and realised the other half of the bed was empty.

"Montana." Danny walked over to her side.

"Hey."

"What are you doing up?" He asked.

"Nightmare and right now I am trying to decide why anyone would want one of those."

"They wouldn't sell it if people weren't stupid enough to buy it. So what was the nightmare about?"

"The lab blew up."

"Why didn't you wake me up? I could have helped you chase it away."

"I've experienced your way of chasing nightmare away before." Lindsay reminded him.

"It works." Danny pointed out.

"I didn't think both of us should be up."

"I'm here if you need me."

"I know." Lindsay sighed. "Just give me a hug."

"That I can do." He wrapped his arms around her.

TBC


	106. Chapter 106

"Sorry." Lindsay apologised to Mac. "It seems the FBI has a little issue with their e-mail."

"What were you e-mailing to the FBI?" Mac inquired.

"Agent Howard wanted a list of any suspects who had had a problem with me in the last six months."

"We got a print but there was no match in the system."

"Okay." Lindsay sighed. "So where did you need me?"

"The department counsellor is there if you need to talk." Mac told her.

"I already talked to someone."

"A counsellor?"

"A priest." Lindsay replied.

"I didn't realise you were Catholic."

"I'm not." Lindsay replied. "But I went for a walk and ended up in a church. We talked for a while he gave me perspective. Then Danny tracked me down and we went for Tacos."

"It's okay if you need some time."

"I just need to do my job." Lindsay said.

"There's a woman in a stairwell with a broken neck, we need to figure out whether she was pushed or accidently fell." Mac gave her the address. "Hawkes will meet you there."

"Thank you."

CSI NY CSI NY

"That's got to hurt." Hawkes said seeing the contorted position the woman was in as he reached

"I would say so." Lindsay was taking pictures of the position she was in. "What do you think about lividity?"

"Have you taken enough pictures?"

"Yes."

Hawkes moved up to the side of the woman and moved her body slightly so he could look at her back.

"Lividity is consistent with her laying here on the stairs. But she's cold, and rigor suggests that she's been here for at least 10 hours."

"Her name is Maya Tomlin. 23" Lindsay said. "She lives two floors up. There is a lift so the stairwell doesn't get used much. One of her neighbours decided to be healthy after he went for a run and ran up the stairs and found her body and called it in. He lives in 3D."

"Looks like cause of death is a broken neck." Hawkes concurred with the reported information. "We need to bag her hands."

"If you're okay with the body, I'm going to head up the stairs." Lindsay suggested.

"Go ahead."

By the time Hawkes caught up with Lindsay had just entered Maya's apartment.

"Did you find any money on her?" Lindsay asked. "Or ID?"

"No. Why?"

"She was dressed up like she was going out or coming in."

"So?" Hawkes asked.

"Where is her purse?" Lindsay asked. "If you're going out you at least take a cab fare with you."

"Maybe she left it here." Hawkes suggested.

"I took a cursory look around I can see it."

"So if she was pushed or some opportunist stopped by and took the purse." Hawkes surmised.

"It's a possibility." Lindsay stated.

"How about we get some of your brethren in blue to take a look through the trash cans near here?" Hawkes suggested.

"We should make certain that it's missing first and then you can suggest it."

"Don't you think it would be better coming from you?" Hawkes suggested.

"I'm sure if you really ask nicely and smile at them they'll do it for you." Lindsay patted his arm. "Or suggest it to Detective Gears."

"Who is Gears?" Hawkes asked.

"That would be me." A deep southern accent came from behind him. Hawkes turned around. "Bryan Gears."

"Dr Sheldon Hawkes." Hawkes shook his hand. "Let me guess you're new."

"First day back in homicide after a stint with Homeland Security." He clarified. "So do you have anything new for me Detective?" He asked Lindsay.

"I told you Lindsay is fine. We're looking for her purse which seems to be missing; Hawkes can tell you what else you need to know about the body for now." She explained. "I'm going to keep looking around."

TBC


	107. Chapter 107

Lindsay was stood talking to Detective Gears when she noticed Danny loitering out of the corner of her eye.

"Will you excuse me for a minute?" She requested.

"Of course."

"Are you loitering for a reason?" Lindsay asked Danny.

"Am I interrupting?"

"Nothing major." Lindsay replied. "What's up?"

"I have to head out to Long Island and I'm probably going to be gone for the rest of the day so I wanted to see if you wanted to go and see a movie tonight."

"I'm not really in the mood for action films." Lindsay stated.

"We can go and see anything you want, even a chick flick."

"Will you buy me popcorn and Goobers?" Lindsay inquired.

"Anything you want." He assured her.

"Getting out of the house will be fun okay." She agreed.

"Good. I'll leave you with your friend." Danny said.

"You should come and meet him." Lindsay suggested. "Bryan." Lindsay called out. He walked over. "Danny this is Detective Bryan Gears, he's the new detective in Homicide. Bryan, Detective Danny Messer, Crime lab." Lindsay made introductions.

"Nice to meet you." Bryan shook Danny's hand.

"You too. I've got to go Flack's waiting for me. If you need anything call me or one of the guys or your priest friend or the counsellor."

"Don't worry I'm fine. I'll see you later."

"Okay." Danny kissed her forehead before he left.

"Did I miss something?" Bryan asked.

"You mean you didn't hear?" Lindsay asked.

"Hear what?" Bryan inquired.

"Gossip getting around Homicide is a little lax; I'll have to talk to Flack about that."

"What?"

"I got sent a bomb in the mail yesterday." Lindsay replied.

"A bomb?"

"The only reason it didn't go off in my face was because there was a loose wire." Lindsay explained. "So as I was telling you I'm just heading down to see Sid for the autopsy results."

"You just tell me you were almost blown up yesterday and you're switching back to the case?" He was confused.

"I can't do anything about it. Mac and Stella looked at all the evidence, the FBI are looking into since it came through the mail it's a federal case and if I think about it I can't do my job. I have enough people worrying about me, especially Danny so I would just rather focus on finding out what exactly happen to Maya and the fact that I didn't actually get police protection this time and I did when a serial killer doped me with Rohypnol and skipped town." She took a breath. "I'll let you know what Sid says."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey Sid, what do you have for me?"

"She was killed sometime around ten and midnight last night." He told her.

"Okay, anything else?"

"Cause of death was a broken neck."

"We already knew that."

"Come and take a look at the x-rays." He suggested.

"That's a broken neck." Lindsay studied the x-ray.

"But it's not consistent with a fall."

"What?" Lindsay looked at him.

"This is more consistent with her head being violently twisted to snap her neck."

"She was dead before she was thrown down the stairs?"

"Yes. She was also nine weeks pregnant."

"There were no signs of a boyfriend in her apartment." Lindsay said. "And her purse is missing."

"If you're going to rob someone you don't snap their neck." Sid stated.

"We're looking for someone who wants us to think that. Is there any other bruising?"

"Any bruising that occurred just before death or just after hasn't had chance to come out, come and see me in twenty-four hours? But she was murdered."

"Okay thanks Sid." Lindsay said.

"I heard what happened yesterday. Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine." Lindsay assured him. "We have a boyfriend to track down."

TBC


	108. Chapter 108

"So do you want to fill me in on the situation?" Gears asked Hawkes.

"With Maya, we're still waiting for Lindsay to get back from talking to Sid."

"I meant with Lindsay and Detective Messer."

"Oh that situation. They're together. Have been for about six months now." Hawkes replied.

"And your boss is okay with that?"

"It's not a problem so he's fine with it. They live together, they managed to survive the whole meet the family thing and if you spend more than five minutes with them together you know that they balance each other out. You also learn to ignore the fact that he calls her Montana, it started out as a joke and turned into a term of endearment."

"She said something about a bomb."

"She got send one in the mail yesterday, and was lucky it didn't go off in her face."

"And she's back at work today?" Gears questioned.

"She was back at work yesterday afternoon." Hawkes corrected. "She deals with it in her own way and then gets on with her job; she leaves all the worrying and over protectiveness to Danny. We've all got her back. Just like we were all there when she a serial killer dosed her with Rohypnol at a crime scene a few months back and she lost twenty hours."

"The guy who cut the people's heads off?"

"That's him. She was first on the scene and put it all together. He even sent her a note. The FBI are investigating that too."

"Right."

"There you both are." Lindsay walked in.

"What did Sid have to say?" Hawkes inquired.

"He confirmed she died between ten and midnight."

"Which we knew."

"And that she died of a broken neck."

"Which we also knew." Gears said.

"But her neck was broken because someone forcibly twisted her head. Sid says she was dead before she fell down the stairs."

"So we're looking for a murderer." Gears stated.

"She was also pregnant."

"No one I talked to mentioned a boyfriend."

"You don't have to have a boyfriend to get pregnant." Lindsay pointed out. "Hell these days you don't need a man at all."

"The purse." Hawkes said.

"My thoughts exactly." Lindsay agreed.

"Would someone care to explain?" Gears asked.

"Her purse is missing; someone killed her pushed her down the stairs so it looked like an accident and if that didn't work took her purse so it would look like a robbery."

"So it was probably someone she knew."

"They are checking for DNA from under her fingernails." Lindsay stated.

"I'll go and chase up anymore information I can find on him." Gears said.

"We've got her computer I'll take a look who she has been talking too." Lindsay said.

"Let me know if you find anything." Gears requested and then left.

"He was asking questions about you and Danny." Hawkes told her. "Has he even met Danny?"

"I introduced them before I went to talk to Sid. The face that Danny kissed me on the forehead and told me to call him if there was a problem probably didn't help."

"Why would Danny do that if he's going to be around?" Hawkes inquired.

"He and Flack went out to Long Island for some reason for the rest of the day, so Danny came to ask if I wanted to go and see a movie."

"A movie?"

"I told him I didn't want to see an action film so he said we could see anything I wanted including a chick flick."

"You're going to make him see the sappiest movie you can find aren't you?" Hawkes guessed.

"He managed to survive watching Beaches and Steel Magnolias with me I think he'll be fine." Lindsay assured him.

"It will probably do you good to get out for the night."

"We already had a conversation about him remembering just because we live together doesn't mean he still doesn't have to go out on dates."

"True."

"I'll go and check her computer." Lindsay stated.

"I'll finish going over her clothes and get her phone records and cross reference them with her address book."

"Sounds like a plan." Lindsay agreed.

TBC


	109. Chapter 109

Lindsay sat in the break room waiting for Danny to get back.

Their case had stalled, Gears was trying to track down some of Maya's friends. The people who she talked to were female so no luck with a boyfriend there and her computer didn't have internet access or anything interesting to reveal.

Maya didn't have a cell phone registered in her name, which wasn't to say she didn't have one in someone else's name or a prepaid cell phone which had probably been taken with her purse.

Since everything else could wait until the following day Lindsay and Hawkes had decided to finish on time and pick it up in the morning with fresh eyes.

So Lindsay sat drinking her coffee.

"Hey, I thought you left already." Stella said coming to get herself some coffee.

"I'm waiting for Danny to get back." Lindsay replied. "He's taking me to see a movie; he called to say that he'd be back in forty minutes about an hour ago."

"Traffic is a nightmare this time of the day. Where is he anyway?"

"Long Island." Lindsay replied.

"Long Island?"

"Don't ask why because I have no idea."

"Okay. So what did you think of the new homicide detective?"

"He seems okay." Lindsay replied. "I think it's going to take him a few days to adjust from being in Homeland Security."

"Everything is an adjustment; most people don't end up in a tigers den on their first day." Stella pointed out.

"True. Have you spoken to Agent Howard today?"

"No. There wasn't much else we could tell him other than that we had a fingerprint that didn't match anything we had. We checked it against everyone whose prints we've taken in any case you've been involved since you arrived with no luck."

"It was a long shot. Besides everyone we arrested is in jail or at least everyone who should have a serious grudge."

"Since we've actually confirmed through the post mark it came from Mississippi it casts a wider net."

"Danny suggested we have the bomb sniffer dog check out the apartment." Lindsay told her.

"He's only suggesting things like that because he's worried."

"I'm worried too, but I'm not going to let it control my life."

"Did Mac offer you police protection?"

"Not this time. I don't think I need it, I just won't open anymore parcels until I've had them x-rayed."

"That's a start." Stella agreed. "If you need to talk…" She offered.

"Thanks." Lindsay told her.

"Well have fun at the movie; I have to get back to work."

"Good luck with that."

Lindsay sat there and continued to drink her coffee; she was just about to leave when Danny rushed in.

"Hey sorry. Traffic was backed up for miles." He apologised. "And my cell battery died."

"Why were you out on Long Island anyway?"

"DNA had a hit on our suspect who is in a hospital in Long Island after he tried to walk into the ocean."

"Walk into the ocean?" Lindsay questioned.

"He started walking from the beach and walked out until the water covered his head. Then he got stung by a jellyfish."

"He tried to drown himself and got stung by a jellyfish."

"He also cut his foot on a broken glass bottle and got septicaemia."

"It really wasn't his day." Lindsay said.

"No. The Doctor's think he's going to be okay."

"Good."

"He also confessed."

"And now you have to wait until he's out of hospital and not under the influence of drugs to get a written confession."

"Something like that." Danny replied. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yes."

"So what are we going to see?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out later. The movie doesn't start for ninety minutes, let's go and grab something to eat first."

"Sounds good I'm starving."

TBC


	110. Chapter 110

Lindsay reached across the table and stole on of Danny's fries.

"Hey!" He protested.

"What?" Lindsay inquired innocently.

"I asked if you wanted me to order you some fries and you said no."

"I didn't want fries, think of it this way I'm just helping you protect your waist line." Lindsay suggested.

"What about your waist line?" Danny inquired.

"I have a healthy metabolism." She shrugged.

"You mean you can eat like a truck driver and not put on an ounce."

"Like I said a healthy metabolism."

"So you're just going to steal my fries?"

"Yes." Lindsay replied. "Stealing another one."

"Okay." He paused. "So if I'd made it back to the lab on time we'd have had a couple hours before the movie."

"Actually we could have just seen the earlier showing. But since we had time this seemed like a good idea."

"Are you still going to want popcorn?" Danny inquired.

"Of course."

"Why did I even ask?" Danny asked rhetorically

"I don't know." Lindsay answered.

CSI NY CSI NY

"So what are we going to see?" Danny inquired as they walked towards the cinema which was a few blocks from where they had eaten.

"I'm not telling you. You can go to the concession stand while I buy the tickets."

"This was my idea so I'll pay." Danny said.

"I know you will which is why I alleviated you of twenty bucks earlier."

"You took twenty bucks out of my wallet without me noticing?" Danny questioned. "You know we have laws against that type of things Detective."

"There are laws against sending a bomb through the mail but that doesn't stop people doing that."

"That's a stupid thing to mention."

"Lighten up." Lindsay told him.

"Someone sent you a bomb in the mail that was intended to kill you." Danny reminded her.

"And if I take it too seriously and focus on that I'll go insane. I need to focus on something else. Let's just go and get distracted for a few hours and then we can go home and then we can go home and you can figure out another way to distract me."

"Okay." Danny agreed knowing exactly what she meant.

Lindsay stood in the queue and purchased the tickets and she then went and found Danny who had his hands full with a large popcorn, two large sodas and other assorted confectionary items.

"So can I know what we're seeing now?" He asked.

Lindsay held the tickets up so he could see them.

"Seriously."

"Why not?" Lindsay shrugged.

"The _Rocky Horror Picture Show_?"

"I thought you'd prefer a classic to a chick flick."

"I didn't think they even showed this in theatres any more."

"There's a town in Germany where they have shown it every week since it came out." Lindsay informed him.

"You can't say much for Germany David Hasselhoff is one of their biggest selling artists."

"It's what I wanted to see." Lindsay shrugged. "I should probably also mention that Hawkes may know that you watched Beaches and Steel Magnolias with me."

"Watching those movies with your girlfriend is kind of like a right of passage."

"Right of passage?"

"A guy won't watch those movies unless he really likes a woman, or he's trying to get some. Usually both."

"Interesting."

"And if a guy likes them, it might be a good hint that he's gay." Danny explained.

"I'll bear that in mind for future reference." Lindsay stated.

TBC

A/N: No offence meant to any people from Germany.


	111. Chapter 111

"And he said…"

"Becky?" Lindsay interrupted as she saw the figure sat on the floor outside the apartment door.

"Lindsay." Becky got up and hugged her sister tightly.

"Is everything okay? Did something happen?"

"Did something happen?" Becky stepped back. "You got sent a bomb."

"Why don't we take this inside so we don't scare the neighbours?" Danny suggested unlocking the door.

"How did you find out about that?" Lindsay asked taking off her jacket. "The only thing the news said was there a bomb threat at the lab. My name wasn't mentioned."

"I have friends at the FBI. They know I have a sister who works for NYPD." Becky stated. "Why didn't you call me?"

"There wasn't much to say." Lindsay shrugged. "I'm fine."

"Do you want some coffee Becky?" Danny offered.

"No thank you."

"You didn't tell Mom and Dad did you?"

"No. I caught the first flight out here."

"How long have you been here?" Lindsay asked.

"A couple hours. I called your cell but it was off so I called the lab they said you'd left and had the night off so I waited. Your neighbour gave me some coffee."

"We went to see a movie." Lindsay explained as they sat down.

"You're really okay?"

"I'm fine honestly. Tell her Danny."

"She's fine. Father Hannigan thinks so too."

"Father Hannigan?" Becky questioned.

"Danny's still trying to get over the fact that I went for a walk yesterday and ended up talking to a Catholic priest." Lindsay explained.

"You're a Baptist." Becky stated.

"I know. Father Hannigan didn't seem to mind."

"And what happened to not going to church again after Lennie died?" Becky inquired.

"That was a long time ago."

"Who is Lennie?" Danny asked getting slightly jealous.

"The dog we had when I was a kid. Clay hit him when he was backing up his truck when I was ten." Lindsay explained.

"She was so adamant that she was never going to church again." Becky explained.

"I got over it after about a month of refusing to speak to Clay." Lindsay stated.

"We had a nice funeral."

"Good."

"How long are you here for?" Lindsay inquired. "Aren't you supposed to be at school?"

"It's Veteran's Day tomorrow so I don't have to be back until Monday for two weeks until Thanksgiving."

"The couch is all yours." Lindsay told her.

"I don't want to intrude." Becky said.

"As long as you ignore the odd hours we have to work you can be here the couch is yours." Danny assured her. "Speaking of odd hours I need to go and charge my cell phone I'm on call at midnight."

"Do they know who did it?" Becky asked once he was out of the room.

"No. There is a fingerprint, I guess the FBI are running it through their database to see if it matches the signatures of any other bombs but I doubt it. Agent Howard is running down a list of anyone who could have a motive, but I'm a cop that's a long list."

"You do know he's investigating you don't you?" Becky told her.

"Agent Howard. Of course."

"It's how Xander heard about it and called me."

"And Xander is one the guys you know at the FBI."

"Actually he works for the A-USA's office." Becky said. "He thought I'd want to know."

"I wasn't going to tell anyone, it was easier that way."

"We're your family we love you." Becky gave her a hug.

"I know. I love you too."

"I guess I'm interrupting." Danny said when he came out of the bedroom with blankets and pillows.

"Don't worry." Lindsay told him.

"Just don't let her try to convince you to do the time warp." Danny suggested to Becky.

"Do I want to know?" Becky inquired.

"We went to the Rocky Horror Picture Show." Lindsay explained.

"Ah."

TBC


	112. Chapter 112

A/N: I did try to post earlier yesterday but I couldn't with the problems with Lindsay and Danny both had to work, Lindsay arranged for Becky to come and meet her at the lab for lunch.

"Sorry." Lindsay apologised as she was a few minutes later. "I was just waiting for some test results."

"It's okay." Becky said. "Is Danny not coming with us?"

"He had to go out to Long Island on a case." Lindsay explained.

"Lindsay." She turned around at the voice.

"That's a nice tan you have there." She commented. "I thought you weren't back until tomorrow."

"I'm not officially." Marty told her. "I was just bringing Sid his duty free. I heard what happened are you…"

"I'm fine and in one piece." Lindsay assured him. "How was the conference?"

"I had a lot of time to work on my tan." He replied. "And we haven't met."

"Sorry." Lindsay apologised. "Marty, this is my sister Becky Monroe. Becky, this is Dr Marty Pino one of the medical examiners."

"Nice to meet you." Marty said.

"Clay mentioned you." Becky recalled. "So where have you been to get a tan considering its like 43 degrees outside?"

"Hawaii for a conference, 84 degrees." He replied.

"Now you're making me wish I hadn't maxed out my credit card coming here."

"You maxed out your credit card?" Lindsay turned to look at her.

"Only for two weeks until I get my share of the consulting fee." Becky replied. "And I get my rent next week."

"You get given rent?" Marty questioned.

"For my house." Becky explained.

"You got a house like Lindsay did I see."

"Helped build it too." Becky replied. "Although I actually only ever lived there for a month. But it's there to go home to when I need to."

"I should leave you." Marty said.

"If you're not busy we were about to go to lunch if you want to come with us." Becky offered.

"That would be great; can you just give me five minutes?"

"Sure." Becky agreed.

Lindsay looked at her.

"While he's gone I've got something to tell you." Becky said.

"What?"

"Matt asked me to marry him." Becky held up her hand with a shining diamond ring on.

"Oh my god that thing is huge." Lindsay examined it. "Why didn't you tell me last night?"

"Because we're not telling anyone yet." Becky said. "That's not it."

"You're pregnant?" Lindsay guessed.

"No." Becky replied. "Harvard offered me an assistant professorship. I start in January."

"Wow. Double congratulations." Lindsay hugged her. "Have you told Mom and Dad?"

"No. Matt's coming home with me for Christmas, we'll tell them everything then." Becky stated.

"Hang on I thought you were still finishing your thesis."

"I finished it over the summer. I handed it in the end of October." Becky replied. "I'm staying to help out and because of the consulting and then I actually start work after the end of the exams period in January."

"You should have told me last night." Lindsay told her.

"Last night was about you."

"So you're bringing Matt home for Christmas?" Lindsay asked. "That's definitely springing things on them."

"In for a penny." Becky smiled. "What about Danny?"

"He's coming home with me for Christmas." Lindsay told her.

"That should be fun." Becky smiled.

"I can't believe you're getting married." Lindsay said.

"We're thinking about the summer after school lets out. Do you want to be my maid of honour?"

"As long as I don't have to wear pink or taffeta or something really ugly."

"I was thinking something straight simple, no ruffles and in blue."

"Than you have yourself a maid of honour. One suggestion though."

"What is that?"

"I wouldn't wear the ring when you're walking around New York you're liable to get mugged."

"I'll put it back on the chain." Becky did as her sister suggested.

"Okay ladies." Marty returned. "Let's go to lunch."

TBC


	113. Chapter 113

Lindsay and Becky were laughing hysterically when Lindsay's cell phone rang.

"Can you?" She shoved it across the table to Marty.

"Lindsay Monroe's phone." Marty answered.

"_Pino?"_

"Hey Danny."

"_I thought you were in Hawaii until tomorrow."_

"The conference finished early and that much sunshine in November is too much."

"_Why are you answering Lindsay's phone?" _Danny asked realising that he wasn't speaking to his girlfriend.

"Listen." Marty held out the phone so he could hear them laughing.

"_What's so funny?"_

"I honestly don't know. It must be a Montana thing." Marty guessed.

"_Why are you with Lindsay?"_

"Becky invited me to have lunch with them." Marty explained. "Do you want me to give Lindsay a message when she calms down?"

"_Just tell her I'll see her at the lab."_

"Okay. Bye." Marty hung up and pushed the phone back across the table. "Danny says he'll see you at the lab."

"Thanks." Lindsay replied still laughing.

CSI NY

"You talk to her?" Flack asked as he came to join Danny who was leaning against the car.

"No, apparently she and Becky have some Montana joke that is hysterical and so I talked to Marty."

"As in Pino?"

"Yeah." Danny confirmed.

"I thought he was at some medical examiners conference in Hawaii."

"He's back."

"He only got to go after he and Sid tossed a coin."

"It ended early." Danny shrugged. "But I'd say she's fine."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey Danny." Lindsay said as she walked towards him.

"Hey. So what was so funny you couldn't answer the phone?"

"My cousin Wilbur."

"You have a cousin Wilbur?"

"Well he's technically not family, he's my godfather's son." Lindsay explained. "Marty said something that reminded us of something Wilbur did when we were kids."

"Right." Danny still didn't know what Wilbur did.

"Becky is bringing Matt home for Christmas."

"I guess that won't make me such an easy target."

"Don't worry she's feeling the need to confess to everything."

"Define everything." Danny requested.

"Helping out the FBI, the fact that Harvard offered her an assistant professorship starting in January."

"That's great news."

"That's not the big news." Lindsay told him.

"What tops getting an assistant professorship?" Danny inquired.

"She and Matt are getting married."

"Your parents don't know that they're dating and now they are getting married?" Danny questioned.

"Yep." Lindsay smiled. "Her ring is at least a carat and a half."

"She shouldn't wear that around the streets."

"I already mentioned it to her." Lindsay acknowledged. "I've got to go."

"Go?" Danny asked.

"I'm meeting Bryan downstairs."

"Bryan?" Danny questioned.

"Detective Gears? You meet him yesterday." Lindsay explained. "We're going to talk to our vics ex-boyfriend. I'll see you later."

"Okay bye." Danny didn't know what else to say as she dashed off.

TBC


	114. Chapter 114

Danny left the lab before Lindsay got back. He knew she was with Hawkes and Detective Gears but he still felt slightly uneasy about it.

He left her a note stuck to her locker and went home.

"Hey Danny." Becky said from the kitchen where she was stood in front of a big pot holding a wooden spoon.

"What smells so good?" Danny asked as he pulled off his coat.

"Pasta sauce."

"You made it?" He came to look over her shoulder.

"From scratch." She offered him the spoon so he could taste it.

"That's really good. Almost as good as my grandmother's."

"Well you can beat a true blood Italian's pasta sauce. Mariella gave me her family secret recipe."

"Who is Mariella?" Danny asked.

"She was the wife of the ranch hands when we were growing up, she used to help out with the cooking during the summer when we were busy. She was Italian."

"Lindsay said she learnt Spanish growing up, but she didn't mention learning Italian."

"We didn't. Mariella grew up in a Spanish speaking neighbourhood. Her husband Carlo was from Mexico originally and didn't speak that much English." Becky turned down the heat. "It just needs to cook out for another hour. There should be plenty to freeze as well."

"I hear a double congratulations is in order."

"Thanks." Becky blushed slightly.

"An assistant professorship is a pretty big deal."

"Downing a bottle of champagne on a school night is not a good idea."

"It never really is." He leant back against the counter. "So how long have you been engaged?"

"About a week." Becky admitted.

"And you didn't want to tell your whole family?"

"Probably the fact that Matt and I have been together a year and I haven't told them or that Harvard wouldn't really have approved while I was still a student was a bit of a problem."

"But you told Lindsay."

"She's the only one who knows about Matt." Becky pointed out.

"True."

"And she's my big sister."

"Also true."

"Can I ask you a question?" Becky inquired.

"Sure." Danny replied.

"Do you think the whoever sent her the bomb is the same guy who cut all those people's heads off?"

"Honestly?"

"That would be good."

"I don't know. It's possible." He paused. "In this line of work we piss people off all the time. Putting the bad guy in jail isn't always the end of. We get threats; most of them are people just letting off steam."

"A bomb wouldn't be classified as just letting off steam." Becky pointed out.

"I know. Lindsay is dealing with this by trying to forget it happened, focusing on doing her job so she doesn't have to think about it. When she isn't busy she has time to think, that's when she gets the nightmares."

"You're looking out for her?"

"Becky if I could wrap her up in cotton wool and stash her some place safe I would trust, but she'd hate me for it. She's too independent for that."

"You mean stubborn."

"That too. Look I love your sister if I could protect her from everything I would but I can't. I can try. The bomb, the instructions to make it can be found on the internet, the pieces are all common and could be found at any hardware store, the only thing that they have is one fingerprint and it doesn't match anything in the system. I want to do something but I can't. The FBI are running down everyone she's had contact with since she moved here."

"What about all the crazies from back home?"

"They're trying that too." Danny confirmed.

"Good."

"I'm going to take a shower."

"Do you mind if I call Matt?" Becky inquired.

"Doesn't bother me, I don't pay the phone bill."

"You don't pay the phone bill?" Becky questioned.

"Pretty much everyone I know lives in the greater New York area, so when I moved in Lindsay insisted that she pay the phone bill since she makes a lot of long distance calls, I pay the storage facilities fees, it pretty much evens out." He explained.

"I can have Matt call me back."

"Think of it as an engagement present." Danny told her.

TBC


	115. Chapter 115

"Did you think about using Squish Squash?" Becky suggested she looked up as the door opened. "Matt, Lindsay's home so I've got to go… Yeah I love you too." Becky hung up.

"You didn't have to do that." Lindsay told her.

"It's okay." Becky put the phone back on its base. "Danny dinner will be ready as soon as I cook the pasta." She called.

"Great." Danny came out of the bedroom and dropped the magazine he'd been reading on the table. "Hey Montana." He gave her a quick kiss.

"Hey yourself. Did I miss something?"

"Becky made Mariella's pasta sauce." Danny explained. "We were just waiting for you to get back to eat."

"What if I'd been working a double?"

"Then you would have called and told me."

"Why are you in such a good mood?" Lindsay asked.

"My case is totally solved, I'm not on call tonight and I'm having a home cooked meal with two beautiful women. Why shouldn't I be in a good mood?"

"Becky did you give him happy pills?" Lindsay walked into the kitchen.

"No. But I've only been here once before when I met him so I don't know if he's in a good mood a lot."

"He's from New York." Lindsay reminded her.

"Right." Becky nodded.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Danny inquired.

"New Yorkers aren't exactly the happiest bunch of people in the world." Lindsay pointed out.

"Happiest?" Danny questioned.

"I got yelled at by the person who stole my cab earlier." Becky remarked. "I was the one who hailed it, and she jumped in as soon as I opened the door and yelled at me when I objected."

"That happens."

"The three minute pasta in the cupboard takes longer than three minutes to cook." Lindsay warned Becky.

"I got fresh pasta that takes ten minutes to cook."

"We'll set the table." Lindsay grabbed some plates.

"When you say we I guess that means I'm supposed to help."

"That would be a good idea." Lindsay handed him the plates while she got some cutlery.

"Don't worry as long as you don't make sure everything is at the right angle to everything else is like Matt does you'll be fine."

"That sounds a little obsessive compulsive." Danny pointed out.

"No just mathematically sound. I remember the first lecture of his that I ever sat in. He said everything is mathematically based from a flower and the Fibonacci sequence to the golden rule which governs everything from a simple piece of paper to the great pyramids."

"I hated maths in high school. Liked science thought it made sense."

"So does maths, if you know what you're looking for."

"I'll set the table while you two debate." Lindsay grabbed the plates from Danny.

They were all laughing at one of Danny's stories when Lindsay's cell phone rang. She got up and grabbed it.

"Monroe."

"_Lindsay it's Bryan."_

"I thought we were going to talk in the morning."

"_So did I but something came up."_

"What's going on that can wait until morning?"

"_Another body."_

"What?"

"_It's identical to Maya." _

"Did you call Hawkes yet?" Lindsay inquired.

"_He's on his way down here." _ Gears replied.

"Where?" Lindsay asked.

He gave her the address.

"I'll be there as soon as I can." She hung up. "I'm sorry I've got to."

"You're not on call tonight either." Danny pointed out.

"I know. But we have another body."

"What?"

"Another woman who died in exactly the same circumstances as the case I've been working. I've got to go." She gave Danny a quick kiss goodbye. "Becky I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

"Call me." Danny told her.

"I will." Lindsay grabbed her spare kit and headed out the door.

"I'm just going to call Hawkes." Danny told Becky.

TBC


	116. Chapter 116

"I wasn't expecting to see you this soon." Hawkes said to Lindsay as they walked into the building.

"I was in the middle of dinner. Becky made pasta."

"Sounds nice."

"So how long ago did Danny call you?" Lindsay inquired.

"What?"

"I know Danny better than he knows himself sometimes. How long ago did he call you?"

"About twenty minutes." Hawkes admitted.

Lindsay sighed and rolled her eyes.

"He's only worried because he loves you."

"I know." Lindsay flashed her badge to the uniformed cop outside the building. "What floor?"

"Between the third and fourth." He replied.

"Is there a lift?"

"Just through the doors and straight back." He replied.

"One two three." Hawkes said as they made a decision using rock paper scissors.

"I'll see you when I get down." Lindsay walked in and towards the elevator.

"Stairwell?" Hawkes asked.

"Through that door Doctor."

"Thanks." Hawkes went to begin the climb up the stairs as well as searching the base of the stairwell for clues.

…

Lindsay exited the elevator on the top floor and walked towards the stairwell door.

"The stairs are out of use." A uniformed officer.

"I'm Detective Monroe with the crime lab." She flashed him the gold of the badge on her belt.

"Sorry detective."

"Have you cordoned off the whole stairwell?"

"Yes Detective."

"Which floor did the victim live on?" Lindsay inquired.

"Next floor down." He replied.

"Thank you." Lindsay ducked under the tape as he held the door open for her. She pulled out her torch and began to examine the whole stairwell as she made her way down to the body.

"Hey Bryan." Lindsay said when she reached him.

"About time someone got here."

"We've been here a while." Lindsay assured him. "Hawkes started at the bottom and I started at the top."

"We're still waiting for someone from the ME's office."

"That would be me." Hawkes replied as he reached him.

"He's a one stop service." Lindsay smiled.

"If you want to evacuate, we'll process the area around her and her body." Hawkes told him. "Once we're done and we've sent the body to the morgue we'll take a look around her apartment. But the autopsy won't get done until tomorrow; they're a little backed up. There were a couple of fatal car accidents earlier."

"We'll process anything we find tomorrow." Lindsay added.

"Not tonight?" Bryan asked.

"We both clocked out at 6." Hawkes told him as Lindsay started taking pictures. "And we're not on call tonight so technically we shouldn't be here. I mean Lindsay ran out on dinner with her sister."

"Don't worry she made plenty of pasta sauce and Danny will keep her entertained." Lindsay replied. "Maybe she can convince him that getting married isn't such a bad idea."

"I'll leave you too it." Gears replied.

"You want to get married?" Hawkes asked.

"What?"

"You said something about Becky convincing Danny that getting married isn't such a bad idea."

"I didn't mean me. Becky and Matt are getting married." Lindsay explained.

"So you don't want to get married?" Hawkes asked.

"In the future yes, when I don't have people sending me bombs in the mail."

"To Danny?"

"Who knows what will happen in the future, but Danny really doesn't seem to need to be at a stage where he wants that kind of commitment and he's not ready to make that kind of life altering decision. But then again it surprised the hell out of me when he suggested moving in together." Lindsay shrugged. "So how long do you think she's been dead?"

"At first glance I'd say no more than a couple hours, and cause of death looks like a broken neck and she doesn't have a purse." He took her cue to change topics.

"I'll keep snapping." Lindsay took some more pictures.

TBC


	117. Chapter 117

Since Lindsay had decided to spend her lunch break shopping with Stella and Becky, Danny was having lunch with Hawkes.

"So what do you thinking about marriage?" Hawkes asked.

"It's nice of you to offer buddy, but I'm straight and kind of involved right now." Danny joked.

"You know what I meant." Hawkes stated.

"It's fine why?"

"Just something Lindsay said last night."

"About marriage?" Danny questioned.

"About Becky trying to convince you that getting married wasn't such a bad idea."

"I made a joke about her marrying a math professor that's all." Danny explained.

"Right."

"I guess you didn't bring it up just because of that. What else did she say?"

"Does it matter?" Hawkes asked.

"I'd like to know."

"She said she wanted to get married in the future when people weren't sending her bombs in the mail."

"I wish she wouldn't make jokes about that."

"It's her way of coping." Hawkes pointed out.

"What else did she say that?"

"I asked her if she wanted to marry you. She said she didn't know what the future held and that you weren't ready for that kind of commitment or making that kind of life altering decision."

"She said that?" Danny didn't quite believe it.

"That's what she said."

"She really believes that?"

"That's what she said." Hawkes repeated. "She also said she was surprised when you suggested moving in together."

"Right." Danny sighed.

"It's not like you were planning on proposing anyway." Hawkes said.

"Right." Danny agreed.

"Were you?" Hawkes questioned something in Danny's tone made him think he'd thought about it.

"Not right now." Danny replied.

"It's that serious?" Hawkes asked.

"I never actually lived with a woman before and I practically moved in after our first date."

"You never did tell me how the two of you got together." Hawkes pointed out.

"Sid told her that I called her Montana because I had a crush on her, the case bothered her and she could sleep so she showed up at my door at 3am and asked me why I called her Montana. I kissed her and she stayed the night."

"You move fast."

"We both just slept, we were both tired." Danny stated.

"I believe you, only because I know Lindsay."

"Gee thanks." Danny said.

"Hey is there anything left in there?" Lindsay asked pointing to Danny's can of soda when she and Stella came in the bags of things they had bought.

"Should be." Danny replied.

"Thanks." She downed what was left of his soda and then picked up the uneaten half of his sandwich, she split it in half and hand one half to Stella.

"Didn't find time for lunch in your shopping spree so you had to eat my lunch?" Danny asked.

"We were going to stop but there was a huge queue." Stella explained.

"You should be nice to them." Hawkes told Danny. "Especially when it seems they spent their lunch hour in a lingerie store." Hawkes recognised the bags.

"Oh really, planning a little fashion show for us?"

"I don't think so." Stella replied. "Besides how often do we have to shop when we work the hours we do?"

"We'll see when Becky goes back to Boston." Lindsay whispered in his ear.

Danny smiled.

"We should go and stuff these bags in our lockers." Stella told Lindsay.

"Did Sid get back to us after I spoke to you last?" Lindsay asked Hawkes.

"He said we should head down to talk to him in about half an hour." Hawkes replied.

"Right. Thanks for lunch." She added to Danny.

TBC


	118. Chapter 118

"So what's the verdict Sid?" Lindsay inquired.

"I hear you went lingerie shopping at lunch." Sid said.

"Gossip really does get to the morgue quicker than it does around the lab." Hawkes commented.

"We ran into Pino on the way in." Lindsay explained. "Yes we went shopping at lunch. So what can you tell us about the body?"

"She died around 6 last night; cause of death is a broken neck."

"Let me guess it's more consistent with someone twisting her neck than a fall down the stairs?" Lindsay suggested.

"Very good detective. She had skin cells under her fingernails which I sent to DNA. I looked into the type of infliction that would cause this kind of break, it's definitely military. It would have been lights out very quickly."

"That's something." Lindsay sighed.

"She was also pregnant."

"How far along?" Hawkes asked.

"About 11 weeks."

"So she knew about it." Lindsay concluded.

"That would be a good guess." Sid confirmed.

"Did you extract foetal DNA?"

"Yes, I sent it with the other samples up to the lab."

"Then there is no need for us to take up your time." Hawkes said.

"Lindsay are we still on for Tuesday?" Sid inquired.

"Unless something major comes up between now and then, we should be fine for 7."

"Okay." Sid smiled.

"What was all that about?" Hawkes inquired after they left the morgue.

"I can't say." Lindsay replied.

"You made plans with Sid for Tuesday but you can't say what they are?" Hawkes questioned.

"Yes." Lindsay confirmed.

"Does Danny know about this?"

"No and don't mention it. He's on a late on Tuesday anyway."

"Should he be worried?"

"It's _Sid_." Lindsay reminded him.

"Good point."

"Trust me there is nothing for him to worry about." Lindsay assured him.

"Okay."

"I'm going to see Adam."

"I don't think he's going to have any results yet." Hawkes pointed out.

"I know." Lindsay replied. "I just have an idea."

Hawkes let her do what she wanted to do.

"Hey Adam." Lindsay found him in DNA.

"I'm good but I'm not that good. I only got the samples an hour ago." He held up his hands.

"I know." Lindsay replied.

"So you're not here to hassle me about results?"

"Not yet." Lindsay answered.

"So you just thought you'd drop by?"

"I just wanted to ask you to do something."

"Am I going to like this?" Adam inquired.

"It shouldn't take too long." Lindsay admitted.

"Hit me with it." He crossed his arms.

"When you get the foetal DNA from Louisa Higgins baby can you test it against…?"

"The foetal DNA of your other woman on the stairs." He finished for her. "You think the same guy got two women pregnant and then broke their necks and threw them down the stairs?" He asked.

"Two dead pregnant women with exactly the same cause of death in three days can't be a coincidence."

"I'll let you know when I have the results but it won't be for a few hours yet."

"Just let me know, I need to go and find an obstetrician."

"Because you think they have the same one right?" Adam guessed.

"Well it's certainly not for me; I got my birth control shot last week."

"I'll let you know."

"Thanks." Lindsay went to find the day planners.

TBC


	119. Chapter 119

"Do you have the address book we took from Louisa's apartment?" Lindsay asked Hawkes as she walked into the room carrying an evidence bag containing Maya's address book.

"Somewhere."

He searched it out and handed it to her.

"What are you looking for?" Hawkes looked over her shoulder.

"The name of her OB/GYN." Lindsay replied.

"You think there is a connection?" Hawkes inquired.

"Don't you?"

"Yes." He conceded.

"Adam is going to do a comparison on the foetal DNA when he gets the results."

"You think there is a possibility that their babies had the same father?"

"I'm just clutching at straws for a connection." Lindsay shrugged. "And I have one."

"They have the same OB/GYN?" Hawkes examined the entries.

"I think it's time we made an appointment with the doctor." Lindsay pulled out her cell phone and dialled the number.

"_Doctor Oberman's office."_

"Hello, I'm Detective Monroe with the New York police crime lab, we need to talk to Doctor Oberman when would be a good time to see him?"

"Doctor Oberman is out of town until tomorrow night. He will be here on Monday."

"We need to see him first thing in the morning; we have some questions we need him to answer." Lindsay explained.

"We have a cancellation for first thing in the morning since Mrs Gichimu had her baby yesterday. I can schedule an appointment for 8.30."

"That's fine." Lindsay replied. "Where is your office?"

Lindsay took note of the details and disconnected the call.

"We have an appointment Monday at 8.30." Lindsay told Hawkes.

"You're the police you can just walk in." Hawkes pointed.

"Not when Doctor Oberman is out of town until late tomorrow night." Lindsay pointed out.

"Right. So what now?"

"Are you two busy?" Mac walked in.

"We're just waiting on Adam for DNA results and then there isn't much else we can do until Monday." Lindsay replied. "Why?"

"Someone just crashed into the back end of an assistant DA's car and took her four year old daughter."

"Whatever we can do to help." Hawkes told him.

"The FBI are going to be there, but it's our city so gather as much forensics as you can to see if we can figure out who did this and get the girl back." Mac instructed.

"Whatever you say boss." Lindsay slipped off her lab coat.

"You send too much time with Danny." Mac stated.

"I think that's a good thing." Lindsay shrugged.

BSG

It was gone midnight when Lindsay finally got home.

"Ow!" She exclaimed as she tripped over something.

"Lindsay?" Becky woke up and switch on a lamp.

"Sorry." She apologised. "But I fell over your shoe."

"Sorry." Becky apologised. "Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine." Lindsay rubbed her knee.

"Did everything go okay in your case?"

"It worked out okay in the end." Lindsay yawned.

"You should get to bed."

"Thankfully I get the day off tomorrow."

"Want to go to church?" Becky offered, her flight wasn't until late afternoon.

"Sure." Lindsay replied. "Goodnight."

"Night." Becky echoed.

Lindsay quickly undressed and climbed into bed. Danny pulled her into his arms, so she was resting her head on his chest.

"Get the girl back?" He whispered.

"Yes. Her father wanted paid someone to kidnap her because he'd lost a custody battle."

TBC


	120. Chapter 120

Lindsay took Becky to the airport and then spent most of Monday and Tuesday tracking down information on her case.

Tuesday night after her shift was over she sat on a bench in the locker room pulling on some high heeled shoes.

"That will have to do." Stella closed her locker door and slipped on her shoes.

"You look great." Lindsay assured her.

"You look good too."

"I'm just grateful I bought a coat, otherwise I'd freeze." Lindsay pulled it on.

"I know what you mean." Stella slipped her coat on.

"So does Mac know he's coming with us?" Lindsay flipped the hairs that had caught in her collar over her shoulder.

"If I suggested it ahead of time he would have come up with an excuse why he couldn't go. So I thought we'd walk into his office and kidnap him." Stella explained.

"Sounds like a good plan to me." Lindsay smiled.

"Let's go and get him then."

Stella and Lindsay headed to Mac's office. Stella tapped on the door.

"Come in." Mac called.

"Hey Mac." Lindsay said.

"Are you two heading out?" He looked up from his desk.

"Actually we came to see if you had plans for the night?" Stella asked.

"Just catching up on some paperwork."

"Good then you can come with us." Lindsay told him.

"Come with you where?" Mac inquired.

"That would ruin the surprise." Stella stated. "But we're all dressed up and you have to come with us."

"You need come out with us and have some fun." Lindsay told him.

"Think of it as kidnapping intervention." Stella suggested.

"I'm not dressed to go out." Mac pointed out.

"Loose the tie and you'll be fine." Stella assured him.

"We'll have fun." Lindsay insisted.

"You're not going to stop until I agree to go are you?" Mac asked.

"No." Stella confirmed.

"Fine." Mac conceded. "I'll go wherever you're taking me."

"That was easier than I thought." Lindsay said. "I thought we'd have to break out the handcuffs."

"What you and Danny get up to…" Stella joke as she handed Mac his coat.

"That would be a misuse of NYPD property." Mac pointed out.

"Don't worry Danny prefers the pink fluffy ones anyway." Lindsay winked at him. "Let's get out of here."

"Um um um." Danny said as he studied his colleagues especially Lindsay and Stella's legs. "What with all the dressing up?"

"We are taking Mac out for the night." Stella informed him.

"They're kidnapping me." Mac corrected.

"You don't look too bothered about it." Danny pointed out.

"You can call it cop-napping if you'd prefer." Lindsay offered.

"It's more of an intervention so he doesn't spend his night sat in his office doing paperwork." Stella explained.

"Just remember to have him home by midnight it's a school night." Danny told them.

"Try not to wake me up when you come in." Lindsay requested.

"Given that you're going out, I'll probably be home before you are." His pager went off. "My results are in."

"Page me if you need some help." Mac told him.

"Enjoy your night off." Danny countered.

"We don't want to keep Sid waiting; he's meeting us in the lobby." Lindsay told him.

"Sid's going with you?" Danny questioned.

"Yes."

"Where exactly are you going?" Danny inquired.

"Now that would ruin Mac's surprise wouldn't it?" Stella pointed out.

"Well have a good night." Danny told them all. "I'll want details later." He whispered in Lindsay's ear.

"Sure." Lindsay smiled.

TBC


	121. Chapter 121

They all entered the club, they checked their coats.

The music echoed through out the place.

"Salsa music?" Mac questioned.

"The band is only here for the night." Stella explained.

"You like salsa music Sid?" Mac inquired.

"Love it."

"This was all Sid's idea." Lindsay explained.

"So just relax, let your hair down." Stella told him.

Mac raised his eyebrows.

"Do you want to dance Miss Monroe?" Sid asked Lindsay.

"I'd love to." Lindsay took his hand.

"Is there something more to this than you're letting on?" Mac asked Stella.

"It's the first night she would have been home alone since the bomb." Stella pointed out. "But then again we agreed to this before the whole bomb thing came up."

"And making me come?"

"Did you really want to leave us alone with Sid for the whole night?" Stella inquired. "Let's dance."

"I not sure I know how to Salsa that well." Mac admitted.

"Don't worry you'll be an expert by the end of the night." Stella assured him.

CSI CSI

Stella and Lindsay were sat on stools at a table sipping soda through straws watching Sid and Mac dance with two of the other female patrons.

"Excuse me." The waitress came over. "The gentlemen at the bar sent this over for you." She set a drink in front of Lindsay.

"Can you take it back to him and tell him thanks but no thanks?"

"That's what you want me to tell him?" The waitress was a little surprised.

"Tell him I don't accept drinks from strange men in bars and my boyfriend wouldn't like it."

"Sure." She put the drink back on her tray. "Have a nice evening."

"And you break the poor guy's heart." Stella joked.

"You know as well as I do why you shouldn't accept drinks from strange men in bars because you don't know what they have put in them and you know the consequences. Getting dosed with Rohypnol once is enough for one life time. I'd rather not take the risk and I definitely don't want to try GBH."

"And the part about Danny?"

"You have to let the guy down gently." Lindsay shrugged. "And do you think he'd approve of guys buying me drinks in bars?"

"Good point."

"Not that Danny gets a say in that although he does have a slight jealous streak."

"As long as it just stays a jealous streak you'll be fine."

The song finished and Mac and Sid returned to join them.

"You looked like you were having fun out there." Stella commented.

"What do they say 'that the rhythm is going to get you'?" Sid guessed.

"I think that's a line from a song." Lindsay pointed out.

"It's still true."

"I'm going to get us some more drinks." Lindsay hopped off her stool and walked over to the bar. "Four club sodas with lime." She told the bartender.

"My drink not good enough for you?" A man walked over to her.

"It was nice of you to send it over, but I don't accept drinks from men I don't know." Lindsay replied.

"But you'll accept them from the old men you're with?" He asked.

"Well that's Detective Taylor." She pointed out Mac. "He's my boss, and that's Detective Bonasera and that is Dr Hammerback with the Officer of the Medical Examiner. I'm Detective Monroe."

"And the boyfriend comment?"

"My boyfriend is a detective too; he just had to work tonight." Lindsay explained. "Thanks keep the change." She handed the bartender some money. "And for future reference with all the creeps out there who are willing to put something in a woman's drink when you offer to buy her a drink give her the money and let her buy it herself so that she knows that you're not a creep who is going to drug her and date rape her. Have a nice evening."

Lindsay picked up her drinks and walked back to the table.

"Everything okay?" Stella inquired.

"Just explaining why I don't accept drinks from people I don't know." Lindsay sat back on her seat.

TBC


	122. Chapter 122

Danny was surprised to find Lindsay sitting on the floor outside their apartment door when he got home just shy of 1am.

"It was nice of you to wait up for me Montana, but you could have done it inside." Danny told her.

"I left my keys in my locked and my cell battery died so I just thought I'd wait for you here."

"It's a good thing I didn't have to pull a double." Danny helped her to her feet and gave her a kiss. "Let's get inside." Danny used his key to open the door.

Once inside Lindsay kicked off her shoes.

"That's better!" She sighed.

"So where exactly did you go?" Danny inquired as he shrugged off his jacket and hug it up.

"Salsa dancing." Lindsay replied.

"You took Mac Salsa dancing?" Danny didn't quite believe it.

"He's actually pretty good." Lindsay admitted.

"Now that's something I would have paid money to see."

"Actually watching Sid pick up a woman was something that has to be seen to be believed."

"Okay that's not something I want to think about, it's like your parents having sex."

"That's not an image I needed at this time of the morning." Lindsay stated.

"Sorry." He apologised.

"How was work?" Lindsay inquired.

"There was no one reported dead that needed a scene process after you left."

"That's always something." Lindsay smiled. "I'm going to take a quick shower I smell of alcohol."

"How much did you drink?"

"Four club sodas and two orange juices. Although a guy did send me a vodka martini."

"And what did you do with it?" Danny asked.

"I sent it back to him and told him that I didn't accept drinks from strange men in bars." Lindsay replied. "Then later I explained to him that if he wants to buy a woman a drink these days it's better to give her the money so she can buy it herself so she knows he hasn't put anything in it."

"Sensible."

"I'm going to take that shower."

"Mind if I join you?" Danny inquired. "I smell of print powder."

"We may as well conserve water. Help me with the zip?"

Danny walked over and kissed the side of her neck as he slowly unzipped her dress. Lindsay let it pool to the floor and stepped out of it.

"Are you coming?" She invited over her shoulder.

"Right behind you."

CSI NY CSI NY

Danny pulled her closer to him in his sleep.

Lindsay ran a gentle hand across his arm as she waited for the alarm clock to go off. She had to be at work by 8, while Danny didn't have to be there until 10.

Lindsay had gotten used to sleeping in the warm comfort of Danny's arms, and when he wasn't there to hold she found it difficult to sleep.

Lindsay's previous boyfriends hadn't been much for holding her when they slept; they preferred to sprawl out on their stomachs taking up as much of the bed as possible and drooling on her pillow.

"What are you thinking?" Danny whispered in her ear.

"I didn't think you were awake."

"Your brain ticking over was a little loud."

"Sorry." She apologised.

"What are you thinking about?"

"This is nice."

"Nice?" Danny questioned.

"Nice." Lindsay repeated.

"That's a lousy word."

"How about lovely, comfortable, or swell?"

"Swell?" Danny questioned. "Who uses that word?"

"The people in Pleasantville." Lindsay replied.

"Right."

The alarm beeped.

"Now I have to get up to go to work."

"I think you can spare another few minutes, I mean this is nice."

TBC


	123. Chapter 123

Danny let himself in to the apartment; it was the day before Thanksgiving. Lindsay had worked until 2 and then gone home Danny didn't get back until just gone six.

He could hear the gentle sounds of Andy Griggs playing in the background.

A wonderful smell drew him to the kitchen he stopped when he saw the sight before him.

His eyes slowly moved up Lindsay's body as she stood in front of the stove, he started at her feet which were clad in three inch heels, moving slowly up her stocking clad legs, complete with back seam, up to her short red dress.

Danny couldn't help himself; he let out a low wolf whistle.

"Hey." Lindsay turned around slightly startled.

"You look great." He told her.

"Thanks." She blushed slightly.

"What's with the dress up? Are we expecting company?"

"It's tradition." She shrugged.

"What's tradition and what smells so good?"

"Dinner and we always dress up for Thanksgiving dinner in my family."

"I hate to be the one to break it to you Montana, but Thanksgiving is tomorrow."

"I know. But we have to work, so I thought we could celebrate tonight."

"So what are you making?" Danny stepped closer.

"We got turkey, sweet potatoes, yams, cranberry sauce amongst other things and pumpkin pie for desert."

"It smells great and so do you." He was close enough to her to smell her perfume.

Lindsay blushed.

"Hang on does this mean I have to dress up to?" Danny inquired.

"Just put on a pair of pants and a shirt and you'll be fine."

"Do I have time for a quick shower?" He inquired.

"Dinner won't be ready for another forty-five minutes; I wasn't expecting you back quite so soon." She admitted.

Danny kissed her.

"What was that for?"

"Being you." He kissed the tip of her nose. "I'll be right back."

It took twenty minutes for him to return.

"You put on a tie." Lindsay smiled looking up from where she was setting the table.

"Well you put on a killer dress and heels it was the least I could do." He shrugged. "So are there any other holiday traditions I should know about?"

"We usually go around saying what we're thankful for."

"You mean something like I'm grateful that you decided to wear that dress and I'll be even more grateful when I can get you out of it."

"Down cowboy." Lindsay told him. "Dinner first and then you can try to convince me that you should get lucky tonight."

"How convincing am I going to have to be?" He inquired.

"I need to check on the turkey." Lindsay said leaving him hanging as he headed to the kitchen.

/…/

When dinner was finally ready they sat at the table.

"And traditions in your family?" Lindsay inquired.

"There was this poem I remember from when I was a kid, I never knew who wrote it."

"Let's hear it."

"May your stuffing be tasty

May your turkey plump,

May your potatoes and gravy

have nary a lump.

May your yams be delicious

and your pies take the prize,  
and may your Thanksgiving dinner  
stay off your thighs!" Danny recited.

"Where did you get that from?" Lindsay inquired.

"Someone in grade school, I remember getting ground after I recited it to my grandmother.

"I like it. Let's eat."

TBC

A/N: I found the poem on a website of famous thanksgiving quotes; it's called the Thanksgiving 8000 calorie poem and is by an unknown author.


	124. Chapter 124

"So how was your Thanksgiving?" Stella inquired as she and Lindsay approached a scene on Friday morning.

"We spent all day processing a murder-suicide." Lindsay replied. "A guy decided that if his ex-wife would let him spend the holiday with his kids, she wouldn't either. So he walked in and shot all of them before killing self. We found a note."

"That's not a happy holiday story."

"Danny and I had our own thanksgiving celebration Wednesday night. Turkey and all the trimmings, I even convinced Danny to put on a tie."

"I've only ever seen him in a tie when he goes to court." Stella remarked.

"I put on very short red dress and heels, I think that was enough to convince him to do it all on his own."

"Sneaky." Stella smiled.

"It was nice."

"Hang on you managed to cook a whole turkey with all the trimmings after work?"

"Just a turkey crown." Lindsay admitted. "There was only the two of us and otherwise we'd have been eating turkey for days."

"I know some guys who will eat just about anything." Stella pointed out.

"True." Lindsay smiled.

"So are you ready to do this?" Stella inquired.

"I managed the zoo on my first day; the aquarium should be that much hassle."

"I'm afraid you're going to have to go and join the queue to get in." One of the security guards told them.

"I don't think so." Lindsay told him. "We're with the crime lab; we're here to investigate the dead body."

"Can you keep that quiet?" He requested.

"You don't think your visitors are going to notice an area cordoned off by a bevy of police officers?" Stella inquired.

"Will you just go inside and get this over and done with as soon as possible?"

"It takes as long as it takes; now point us in the direction of the Walruses."

CSI CSI

"Hey Mac." Danny caught up with him.

"Hey Danny, I heard about the murder-suicide yesterday."

"It wasn't pretty." Danny agreed. "I heard there was a body dumped in the walrus pen at the aquarium."

"Lindsay and Stella went to investigate." Mac stated.

"It's barely 36 degrees outside." Danny pointed out.

"I'm sure they'll be fine." Mac told him.

"Stood in cold water in temperatures barely above freezing? They'll catch pneumonia."

"They know what they are doing. Just make them some hot cocoa when they get back."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Morning ladies." Flack stood by the walrus enclosure rubbing his gloved hands together. "Can we make this quick it's freezing?"

"It takes as long as it takes to process." Stella informed him. "What have we got?"

"Body was floating in the water when the keepers got here this morning, the walruses put pushed it onto the island; they also took a good chunk out of this." Flack held up what looked like the remains of the guy's wallet in an evidence bag.

"How deep is the tank?" Lindsay inquired.

"The keepers say you can't search it for evidence, the walruses are used to them but they are a little territorial if anyone else goes near them. The water is 20m deep. They can get a diver in there for you if you want but it's freezing."

"How are we supposed to retrieve the body?" Lindsay inquired.

"The keepers will keep them distracted." Flack replied.

"If he was in the water there isn't much we can do anyway except get a water sample." Stella stated. "I don't think they'll let us drain the tank and personally I don't scuba diver."

"Me neither." Lindsay replied.

"So we take as many pictures as possible get him in a body bag and we'll collect the evidence back at the lab." Stella stated.

"See if we can take a closer look at the bottom of the tank just in case from one of the observation areas." Lindsay added.

"Sounds like a plan."

TBC


	125. Chapter 125

"You two look a little blue." Sid commented when they made it to the morgue.

"You try standing outside in weather that with wind chill is below freezing and you'd look a little blue too." Lindsay told him.

"She doesn't do well in cold weather without a thick coat, hat and gloves." Stella pointed out.

"It's only practical." Lindsay shrugged. "And it usually a lot colder in Montana. It's standing beside that much water with the threat of a giant walrus coming after me."

"So what can I tell us about our vic?" Stella inquired.

"Normally I would have a problem declaring him dead because…."

"You have to be warm and dead." Lindsay finished for him.

"Exactly, but in this case you're in luck he was dead before he went in the water."

"Please tell me that the walruses didn't have anything to do with it, I'm really not in the mood to go and take tusk impressions." Lindsay shivered.

"Not unless they learnt how to use a small calibre gun since the last time I saw one."

"He was shot?" Stella questioned.

"Three times to the chest."

"That grouping is the way law enforcement are taught to shoot." Lindsay commented.

"Have you extracted the bullets yet?" Stella inquired.

"I've just x-rayed him. I thought you might want to process the body first."

"Thanks Sid."

"It will give him a chance to warm up and then I'll take fingerprints for you."

CSI NY CSI NY

"I see you weren't eaten by a walrus then." Hawkes remarked when he saw Lindsay later.

"Obviously not."

"No pneumonia or frostbite?" Hawkes inquired.

"I don't think so. Why?"

"Danny seemed highly concerned that you and Stella would catch pneumonia."

"I'm fine, a little cold and wishing someone could invent practical insulated latex gloves."

"That actually sounds like a good idea." Hawkes said.

"If you get around to inventing them, I want a cut of the profits."

"Deal."

"I've got to go and run our John Doe's prints through the system, I'll see you later."

"Okay." Hawkes replied.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay pulled on her hat, wrapped her scarf tightly around her neck and pulled her gloves on. It had started snowing heavily during the day.

"You look nice and snug." Stella commented.

"I'm going to go home and curl up with a hot water bottle."

"You know human hot water bottles work better, skin to skin contact."

"I have no idea where Danny is."

"Doesn't it snow in Montana?"

"There are ski slopes; I grew up bundling up against the cold. But New York is a giant wind tunnel."

"True." Stella agreed. "Well keep warm."

Lindsay sneezed.

"And don't catch a cold." Stella added.

"I'll see you in the morning."

"Have a nice evening."

"You too."

Lindsay left the building and after a few minutes managed to hail a cab.

When she got home she took a hot bath and changed into her warm pyjamas and a thick pair of Danny's socks.

She curled up on the couch with a mug of hot cocoa, a hot water bottle and a blanket and watched some made for TV movie that was on.

TBC


	126. Chapter 126

Lindsay woke up coughing, her head was pounding.

"Hey are you okay?" Danny woke up.

"No." She croaked.

"What's wrong?"

"I think I have a cold."

Danny felt her forehead.

"You don't have a fever."

"I know."

"I told Mac you'd get sick."

"I haven't got pneumonia." Lindsay protested.

"I know." He kissed her forehead. "I'll get you some orange juice, you need vitamin c." He climbed out of bed.

"Thanks."

While Danny was pouring some orange juice into a glass he grabbed his cell phone from the counter and dialled a number. Despite it being just after 7am he knew his boss would be in his office.

"_Taylor." _ Mac answered.

"Mac it's Danny."

"_Let me guess you found another body on your way to work?"_

"Since I haven't left my apartment yet I don't think so."

"_So to what end do I owe this early morning phone call?"_

"I don't think Lindsay is going to make it in today." Danny informed him.

"_Why not?"_

"She woke up with a cold; she sounds awful she doesn't look much better. It's probably best if she just spends the day in bed." Danny told him.

"_Tell her to feel better soon."_

"Thanks Mac. See you in an hour." Danny hung up.

He carried the glass back to the bedroom. Lindsay had fallen back to sleep. He tucked her in her and kissed her forehead and went to get ready for work having already switched the alarm clock off.

When it was time for him to leave, he left her a box of tissues, some aspirin and a note.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Sorry I'm late." Lindsay apologised when she made it to the lab.

"I wasn't expecting you in today; Danny called in sick for you." Mac told her.

"So his note said, I didn't ask him to it's just a cold."

"Perhaps you should go home." Mac suggested.

"Mac, I'm not a guy who is dying every time he gets a cold."

"You look a little pale, why don't you just take the weekend off so you don't infect everyone else and come back on Monday."

"I have too…."

"Stella has already given me an update on your case. You can't do any more until you get an ID on your vic or the gun. She's out with Hawkes. Your John Doe will still be in the morgue on Monday."

"I've already used up a lot of my sick days in the last few months."

"A few of those count as injured in the line of duty so technically its only the days with the broken foot that count. You have tomorrow off anyway so go home wrap up warm and eat chicken soup."

"I can still…"

"Contaminate evidence by sneezing on it. Go home and that's an order."

"Yes boss." Lindsay conceded not feeling up to arguing with Mac when she knew she would loose anyway.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay had only been home a few minutes when there was a knock on the door.

She climbed off the couch still wearing her coat and opened the door. She was surprised to see Danny's Mom there.

"Hi."

"Danny called, he said you were sick."

"I have a cold." Lindsay replied.

"I bought you some chicken noodle soup." She handed.

"That's really nice of you but you didn't have to come all this way."

"I was coming into the city anyway. Why don't you go and lie down and I'll heat you up some soup?"

"Thank you."

TBC


	127. Chapter 127

Lindsay was curled up on the couch when Danny got home.

"Feeling any better?" He inquired.

"No."

"I'm sure you will soon."

"You called in sick for me?"

"I thought you could do with the day off because you still look a little pale except for a bright red nose."

"So I heard when I went to work two hours late."

"I heard Mac sent you home." He hid a smile.

"Then you sent your mother over here?" Lindsay questioned.

"Mom dropped by?" Danny said.

"She brought me chicken soup."

"That's nice of her."

"It's a cold, I'm not dying. She didn't need to come all the way to Manhattan to bring me chicken soup."

"Unfortunately she likes you." Danny patted her hand. "Do you want anything?"

"Some juice."

"Okay." He kissed her forehead.

When he came back Lindsay lifted her head so he could sit down, she tossed a cushion on his lap and rested her head on it.

"What are we watching?" Danny inquired since there were commercials on.

"The game is about to start."

"Just to clarify what type of game?" Lindsay had tricked him before.

"A replay of some baseball game. There wasn't much on."

"I can watch a ballgame."

"You _can_ always watch a ballgame."

"Are you sure you don't want to watch something else?" Danny inquired.

"I don't really care." She yawned.

"Go to sleep then." He gently stroked her hair.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay woke up with a large sneeze.

"Gesundheit!" Danny said.

"What time is it?" Lindsay inquired.

"Just after ten. Did you enjoy your little nap?"

"No." She yawned.

"I think it's time we got you in bed."

"We have to do our Christmas shopping."

"I know this is New York but I think all the major stores will be shut." Danny pointed out as he checked her for a fever.

"I didn't mean right now I mean soon."

"Christmas is a month away." He reminded her.

"But we're going to Montana, we need to buy gifts and ship them."

"I have to buy your family gifts?" Danny questioned.

"I'll put you name on mine but we still need to buy them."

"Okay, we'll go shopping when we get some time off." He assured her. "And when you're feeling better."

"Okay." Lindsay agreed.

"Let's get you to bed."

"I'm not a baby." Lindsay protested.

"I know. But you're doing a very good impersonation of Rudolph."

"And I love you too." Lindsay tried to say sarcastically but started coughing.

"Come on bed for you."

Lindsay let him escort her to the bedroom, since she was already wearing her pyjamas. She climbed into bed. Danny tucked her in.

"Goodnight." He kissed her forehead.

"You know you keep doing that." Lindsay pointed out.

"I'm trying not to catch your germs. I'm going to watch TV for a while; I'll try not to wake you when I come to bed."

"Okay." Lindsay yawned. "Night."

TBC


	128. Chapter 128

Lindsay's cold got better and the Christmas shopping got done.

Lindsay double checked she had everything.

"Are you ready to leave?" Danny inquired. "The taxi will be here in a few minutes."

"I think I've gotten everything."

"We're only going for four days." He reminded her.

"I know."

"And you've been packed for the last week." He added.

"I know that too."

"So can we go?" He inquired.

"Of course."

"Good." He grabbed her bag.

Lindsay made sure everything was switched off and unplugged.

CSI NY CSI NY

After almost seven hours of travelling they finally made it to Montana.

Lindsay broke out in the biggest smile.

"Feel good to be home?" Danny asked.

"Like you wouldn't believe."

"Who is picking us up?"

"Mom said it was someone I'd recognise." Lindsay replied.

They grabbed their luggage, Lindsay left Danny was the trolley when she recognised someone in the crowd of people waiting to pick people up.

She ran over and gave him a hug.

Danny strolled over.

"Danny, this is my godfather Joseph Damson, Uncle Joe this is Danny Messer." Lindsay made introductions.

"Nice to meet you." Danny said.

"Need me to run a background check on him?" Joe inquired.

"He's a New York City police detective, and I've met his mother I think he checks out okay." Lindsay assured him. "Uncle Joe is the local Sherriff." Lindsay explained to Danny.

"Right." That made a little more sense.

"Want to get home?" Joe asked.

"Please. But I want to make a quick stop along the way there is something I want to show Danny."

"I think I know exactly where you mean." Joe said.

"So when is it going to snow?" Lindsay inquired as she took his arm and he led them out of the airport to his awaiting patrol jeep.

"Not until tomorrow. After 8 and but definitely before nine." Joe replied.

"Your local weather report is that specific?" Danny questioned.

"Just Uncle Joe." Lindsay answered for him. "He's one sixteenth Cheyenne Indian and can always predict when it will snow within an hour."

"Impressive." Danny agreed.

"It's passed down through the generations."

"Is Becky here yet?" Lindsay asked.

"First thing tomorrow more. Your Mom says she's bringing someone with her." Joe stated.

"I know."

"You know who it is?" Joe asked.

"I've met him."

"What's his name? Do I need to check him out?"

"No. He's a good guy." Lindsay assured him. "Danny tell him."

"Yeah he's great. He's already had a background check too."

"It's the first time Becky's brought a guy home." Joe pointed out.

"She's all grown up Uncle Joe." Lindsay reminded him.

"And you bringing home a city fellow."

"He's not that bad." Lindsay stated. "Even if he does think there isn't anything beyond skyscrapers and 24 hour takeout delivery."

"Hey!" Danny protested.

TBC


	129. Chapter 129

"Will here do?" Joe asked Lindsay.

"Here is great." Lindsay assured him.

Joe pulled over to the side of the road and switched off the engine.

"Come on." Lindsay told Danny as she hopped out.

"What?" He followed her.

"Look." Lindsay suggested.

The sun was setting in the distance between the snow tipped mountains. Fields stretched out for miles around them, only small dots of houses could be seen in the distance.

"Wow." Danny said.

"Take a deep breath and listen."

Danny did as she suggested, then looked at her.

"This is fresh air." She told him. "And the sound of complete silence. No constant din in the background like back in New York and give it a few hours and you can see the stars."

"Maybe the country ain't so bad." Danny conceded.

"It's a lot better in daylight. I know a place where you can see for 80 miles too." She told him. "But you have to walk up there yourself."

"Can we get back in the jeep it's cold?" Danny requested.

"It was colder in New York when we left." Lindsay pointed out.

"Still doesn't mean it's not cold now." Danny countered.

"Let's go."

CSI NY CSI NY

"This is where you grew up?" Danny asked when they arrived at their destination.

"Home sweet home." Lindsay replied. "Are you coming in Uncle Joe?"

"No I have to get home to Tilly." He answered. "You should remember to drop by before you go back to New York."

"I will." Lindsay assured him. "Thanks for the ride."

"All part of the service."

Lindsay let them into her parent's house.

"Anybody home?" She called.

"Auntie Lindsay." Two young boys ran and hugged her legs.

"Hey trouble." Lindsay ruffled both their hair. "These are my nephews. This is Luke he's 7 until New Years Eve then he's 8, and this is Peter he's six."

"Hi." Danny said.

"Who is he?" Peter asked.

"This is my friend Danny." Lindsay explained. "He's come to spend Christmas with us."

"Do you know how to have a snow ball fight?" Luke inquired. "Sherriff Joe says it's going to snow tomorrow."

"I can throw a pretty mean snowball." Danny assured him.

"Then you can play with us." Peter told him.

"I think that means they like you." Lindsay smiled. "Hey Gracie." She smiled at her five year old niece who was looking hesitantly around the corner.

"Hey." Danny crouched down. "I'm Danny, what's your name?"

"Grace." She mumbled.

"It's nice to meet you Grace. Do you like playing in the snow too?"

"You talk funny." Grace stated.

"That's because I'm from New York. Do you know where that is?"

Grace nodded.

"Where Auntie Lindsay lives. Mommy showed me on my map."

"Marcie has a map of the country and puts a pin in where the team is playing that week so the kids know where their Dad is." Lindsay explained.

"Do you think you could help me make some snow people if it snows tomorrow?" Danny asked Grace.

"Okay." Little girl who was shy of new people hugged him.

"So how do you like your new brothers?" Lindsay asked her nephews. Her sister-in-law Marcie had had twin boys only two weeks before. They were named Sam and Ben after both their grandfathers.

"They cry a lot." Luke told him.

"And they don't do much." Peter added.

"That's because they are little, given them a few years and they can play football with you." Lindsay told them. "Why don't we all go and find everyone else?" She suggested.

Danny carried Grace as they went in search of the rest of Lindsay's family.

TBC


	130. Chapter 130

Lindsay and Danny made it up to her room. Back in New York it would have been almost midnight.

"So this was your room growing up?" Danny looked around.

"They've redecorated since then but yes." Lindsay replied.

"Ever get any action in here?" Danny inquired.

"As far as I know none of us have ever done it under my parent's roof and that isn't going change while we're here."

"You're a country girl I bet you lost it in a hay barn."

"Not that I haven't done it in a hay barn, but actually it was the second year of college to one of the TA's."

"Did you at least get a decent grade out of it?"

"He wasn't a TA on any of my courses; he was TA for one of the English classes. He had a habit of reciting John Donne poetry when he got hot and bothered which drove me crazy. That's probably why it fizzled out after a couple weeks, which was a real shame as he was really cute. But since we're in a sharing mood." She prompted.

"Tina Marconi." Danny replied. "She was the neighbourhood…." He paused looking for the right word.

"Hooker?" Lindsay guessed.

"Slut." Danny corrected. "She'd put out for a bottle of beer."

"I thought you had higher standards than that."

"I was fourteen and horny."

"I see the only thing that changed was your age."

"I'm a guy." Danny shrugged.

"You sure are cowboy." Lindsay winked at him and then yawned.

She started to move the extra pillows from the bed into a chair.

"Why do women need to put so many pillows on a bed?" Danny asked.

"For the same reason they put cushions on the couch." Lindsay replied.

"I never understood that either."

"If you don't get it now I'm not going to tell you." Lindsay informed him. "What do think of the quilt?"

"Before I answer that tell if some dead relative made it."

"Actually I made it as a home ec project in high school. It's made from all my dresses that I'd grown out of, and costumes from school plays and that's part of my junior high cheerleaders outfit." She point out a patch of the quilt.

"It's very nice." Danny replied. "How come it didn't come to New York with you?"

"I gave it to Mom as a gift, so she keeps it on my bed."

"That's something I guess."

"I'm going to get ready for bed, the bathroom is through here." Lindsay pointed to the door leading off her room.

"You had your own bathroom?" Danny questioned.

"No I shared it with Becky. Mom will probably put her and Matt in there when they get here tomorrow and then its the big camp out."

"Camp out?" Danny asked.

"Everyone stays here Christmas Eve." Lindsay explained. "The kids enjoy it and it saves getting up early and coming over here on Christmas morning."

"Right." Danny wasn't used to Christmases like this.

"Just remember to make sure both doors are locked when you use the bathroom." Lindsay disappeared inside with her pyjamas."

Lindsay curled up her head resting on Danny's chest.

"Why aren't you asleep?" She whispered.

"It's too quiet." Danny replied.

Lindsay couldn't help but smile.

"Why aren't you asleep?"

"I'm just enjoying the quiet." Lindsay stated.

"We really are from two different worlds."

"No just a couple thousand miles." Lindsay replied. "But we work."

"I know." He kissed the top of her head.

"If it helps any I couldn't sleep when I first moved to New York, it was too noisy."

"I'll get used to it."

"We're only here for a few days and then we can get back to the noisy city you love."

TBC


	131. Chapter 131

"I guess Uncle Joe was right again." Lindsay said looking out the window at just after 8 the next morning, snow flakes were drifting down.

"You're going to have to keep your promise to make snowmen with the kids." Lynne told Danny.

"What time do these kids get up?"

"I wouldn't plan on sleeping in tomorrow." Lindsay told him.

"They'll probably be here around ten." Lynne stated. "There should be enough settled by then."

"You'll get to meet Adam." Lindsay leant against the counter sipping her coffee.

"Should I be concerned?" Danny inquired.

"You survived meeting the rest of the family." Lindsay replied. "Adam is almost as big a push over as Dad."

"Those girls have him wrapped around their little fingers. It's going to be interesting when they start dating." Lynne commented.

"Can you imagine Clay with Gracie?" Lindsay smiled.

"So other than building snowmen, what do you two have planned for today?" Lynne asked.

"I thought I'd introduce Danny to Daisy and then go and show him the house."

"You might need these." Lynne handed her some keys. "We've been keeping the engine ticking over."

"Thanks Mom."

"Daisy is your horse right?" Danny recalled.

"Yes. Grab some of those sugar cubes."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey baby." Lindsay as she gently rubbed Daisy's nose. "I missed you."

"You can take the girl out of the country." Danny joked.

"Just ignore him." Lindsay told her horse. "You can't help that you're rather old and rather dopey can you?"

"How old is she?"

"About 17." Lindsay replied. "But she could live another fifteen years. I would take you for a ride but it's too cold. I'll bring you back in the summer."

"Okay." Danny agreed.

"Take off your glove and just hold a sugar cube on a flat hand." Lindsay instructed.

"She won't bite will she?" Danny asked hesitantly.

"Not likely, she's a big softy." A man voice said from behind them.

Danny turned around to see a guy stood there holding a bale of hay.

"Hey Pete. Merry Christmas" Lindsay smiled.

"Hey Miss Lindsay. Merry Christmas to you too."

"Danny this is Pete, Pete Danny." Lindsay introduced them.

"How ya doing." Danny greeted him.

"How is your Mom doing?" Lindsay inquired. "I heard about her surgery."

"She's doing much better." Pete replied. "Almost as good as new." He replied. "She liked the card you sent her."

"Wish her happy holidays from me."

"I will." Pete replied.

"How's Daisy been doing?" Lindsay asked.

"She's still gets stubborn in cold weather. But she's generally still a pushover for a carrot or a sugar lump."

"She always was." Lindsay rubbed her nose.

"The kids ride her." Pete told her.

"I know."

"I just brought her some more hay; I already mucked out her stall." Pete explained.

"What time did you get up?" Danny asked.

"Five-thirty like always."

"Five-thirty?" Danny repeated.

"Ranches don't stop just because it's Christmas." Pete told him. "The animals still need taking care of."

"We'll come back later." Lindsay suggested. "Come on Danny."

"I don't think he likes me." Danny whispered when they were outside.

"Some people here aren't that fond of big city folks."

"Big city folks?" Danny repeated.

"You asked." She shrugged.

TBC


	132. Chapter 132

Lindsay helped Danny shuffle Peter, Luke and Grace out the door out bundled up in their coats. Her sister-in-law arrive with her other nieces.

"Hey Lindsay." Lucy hugged her.

"Auntie Lindsay." The girls hugged her legs.

"Hey Merry Christmas." She gave them each a kiss. "You've gotten big since I last saw you."

"You must be Danny. I'm Lucy." Lucy shook Danny's hand.

"Nice to meet ya."

"Danny's going to take the kids and help them build a snowman." Lindsay told Lucy.

"I know Lynne mentioned it. If it's okay with you Danny?"

"More the merrier."

"Annie, Faith this is my friend Danny." Lindsay introduced them. "He's going to help you and your cousins build a snowman."

The girls looked at their mother for her approval.

"Go ahead. Why do you go and join Grace and the boys Danny will be there in a few minutes." Lucy suggested. The girls ran off to join their cousins. "I'm going to get some coffee I'm freezing. Just make sure they keep their hats on."

"How do ya tell them apart?" Danny asked.

"Annie has the pink hat on and Faith has the red hat." Lindsay explained.

"And when they're not wearing hats?" Danny inquired.

"Annie has a freckle under her right eye and Faith has one under her left."

"Okay."

"They're what you call mirror twins."

"Mirror twins?" Danny repeated.

"Annie is right handed, Faith is left. That's the only other noticeable external difference."

"External?"

"All of Faith's internal organs are on the opposite side to that of what they are in most people."

"Is she okay?" Danny asked.

"She's perfect. They are both happy and healthy four year olds. I'd get out there before they come looking for you." Lindsay told him.

"You're not coming?"

"I'm going to catch up with Lucy and Marcie. You'll be fine." She gave him a quick kiss and pushed him out the door.

Both Lindsay's sisters were sat around the kitchen table. The baby twins were asleep in their carriers on the floor.

"So he's cute." Lucy smiled at Lindsay.

"I noticed." Lindsay blushed.

"Is he going to survive five kids?" Marcie inquired.

"He's going to try." Lindsay sat down.

"He's the first guy you've brought home for Christmas." Marcie pointed out.

"And you live with him. It sounds pretty serious."

"It is." Lindsay replied.

"Any wedding bells in your future?" Lucy inquired.

"Not in mine."

"Does this have something to do with the guy Beck y is bringing home?" Marcie was intrigued.

Clay and Lynne had gone to pick them up from the airport.

"Maybe."

"Let me guess the math professor." Lucy stated.

"Uh huh." Lindsay nodded.

"They're getting married?"

"She has a big shiny 1 ½ carat ring." Lindsay told them.

"You've seen it?"

"She came to visit for a couple days last month. She lives at his place."

"And you're the only one who knew?" Marcie asked.

"Danny knows too. She wanted it to be a big surprise since it's been going on for quite a while and I was the only one who knew about it."

"I can definitely say Lynne will be surprised and your brothers and Ben."

"She has other news too." Lindsay said.

"She's not pregnant?" Marcie guessed.

"No." Lindsay replied. "She's not pregnant."

TBC


	133. Chapter 133

Lindsay signalled to her nieces and nephews to keep quiet as she crept up behind Danny.

Danny caught Graces eye line and was just about to turn around when he got snow dumped down his neck.

"Montana!" He quickly turned and hauled her off her feet.

"Having fun?" Lindsay asked innocently.

"You're going to pay for that." Danny informed her as he carried her and dumped her into a pile of snow.

"Hey kids what do we do when we get dumped on our butts in the snow?" Lindsay inquired.

"Make snow angels." They yelled before they all dropped to the floor and began making snow angels.

"You're family is strange." Danny stated.

"There's hot chocolate with marshmallows inside for all of you." Lindsay told them. "Remember to shake off the snow before you go in.

The kids ran to the house.

Danny held out his hand to help her up. Lindsay took his hand and instead of letting him help her up she pulled him down on top of her.

Danny had to catch himself before he crushed her.

"Very sneaky Monroe."

"Why thank you." Lindsay replied as he lowered his lips to hers.

"I'm freezing off valuable assets here can we go inside?" Danny asked.

"Sure." Lindsay replied as they both got up. "Mom called they're on the way back from the airport."

"They managed to land during this weather?"

"The last flight that landed, everyone else has been diverted."

"Well your family is in for a nice surprise." Danny said dusting the snow off of himself. He looked at Lindsay who was looking coy. "You told Marcie and Lucy didn't you?"

"Women talk." Lindsay patted his butt and walked passed him.

"That's not an excuse."

"No but it does mean they'll keep my brothers in check."

"So Matt gets protection and I don't?" Danny challenged.

"You can handle yourself." Lindsay kissed his cheek. "Matt's a math professor."

"Did you have fun?" Marcie asked.

"They have a lot of energy." Danny stated.

"That's what you get from being under ten." Lucy smiled.

"Tomorrow will be worse." Marcie added. "And getting them to sleep tonight will be a nightmare." She tucked the twins in.

"What are we on today?" Lindsay asked.

"We did the Muppets yesterday." Marcie replied. "Pick one of the Santas."

"I'm a little lost." Danny admitted.

"They're all a little young for it's a wonderful life so we have a rotation of Christmas movies we watch every year." Lucy explained.

"Muppets Christmas Carol, Santa Claus the Movie and the Santa Clause."

"I love that movie." Danny said.

"Sounds like you just volunteered yourself to watch it with them." Marcie remarked. "The boys know where it is."

"I'll make some popcorn." Lindsay told Danny.

"Look." Lucy whispered to Lindsay from the door to the family room.

Danny was sat on the couch Grace was sat on his lap, the twins were curled up on either side of him and the two boys were sat on cushions at his feet.

"I'd say he get the kids' approval." Lindsay smiled.

"He looks like a keeper." Lucy agreed.

"Maybe we shouldn't interrupt." Lindsay set the bowl of popcorn on the table by the door.

They backed away.

TBC


	134. Chapter 134

"Hey." Becky gave Lindsay a hug.

"Do they know?" She whispered.

"Yes."

"I told Marcie and Lucy."

"Thank you."

They pulled back.

"Hey Matt." Lindsay smiled at her future brother-in-law. "Merry Christmas."

"Same to you."

"Where are the kids?" Becky inquired.

"Watching the Santa Clause with Danny." Lindsay replied. "He helped them build the snowmen earlier."

"I noticed a distinctly your size snow angel on the way in."

"Danny didn't appreciate me dropping snow down his neck." She shrugged. "You should go and see they all look cute."

Becky didn't want to interrupt the scene, so she went and introduced Matt to the rest of the family bar her father and Adam who were still out on the ranch taking care of things.

CSI NY CSI NY

It was a while before Danny walked into the kitchen where all the Monroe women were sat around. Beck and Lindsay were holding their nephews.

"Hey Becky, I didn't know you were here yet." Danny said.

"You look busy I didn't want to interrupt."

"Where are all the kids?" Marcie asked.

"Asleep." Danny replied.

"Clay took Matt for a walk." Lindsay told him before he could ask.

"The kids table needs setting up in the dinning room." Lynne told him. "Second door on the left."

"Okay."

Lindsay handed Sam back to his mother and followed him.

"Are you okay?" She inquired.

"I'm fine." Danny replied.

"Are you sure?"

"Honest." He paused. "I thought you were coming to watch the movie."

"I was but you all looked so cute curled up there I didn't want to interrupt."

"Right." He sighed.

"Danny the kids don't usually take to people like that. My whole family like you, that's a good thing." She assured him.

"I know."

"I just haven't seen them in a while; it's nice to be able to catch up with my family."

"It's okay honestly." Danny assured her.

"Come here." Lindsay closed the door.

"What are you up to Montana?" Danny asked.

"Just put your back to the door."

"Why?"

"So no-one walks in."

She pushed him against the door and kissed.

"What was that for?" Danny asked catching his breath.

"Being so great with the kids."

She kissed him again.

"What was that for?"

"I love you." Lindsay replied. "And I'm really glad here."

Danny took that as his cue to kiss her.

"What was that for?" Lindsay inquired.

"I love you too and I'm glad I'm here. But I have to set up a table for your mom."

"It can wait a few minutes." Lindsay assured him.

TBC


	135. Chapter 135

Dinner went well allowing them to celebrate Becky's news.

While the family would have normally gone to church on Christmas, the fact that there was two feet of snow outside, put them off so they all stayed at home.

Once the kids were in bed, the adults enjoyed some eggnog before they all went to bed too knowing they would be up early in the morning.

Danny yawned as he climbed into bed.

"Tired?" Lindsay asked.

"They have a lot of energy even when playing a board game."

"You and Matt should know better than to challenge kids to play Mousetrap and Rudolph monopoly."

"He's a mathematician and although I'm not anywhere is level of genius I'm a pretty smart guy."

"I think a lot of luck was involved it's not like you were playing chess or trivial pursuit."

CSI NY CSI NY

Danny was dozing happily when a jab to his ribs drew him back to consciousness. The bed bounced.

Danny opened his eyes opened slowly to be met by four very blue eyes.

"He's awake." Annie happily announced.

"Santa did come and you have to get up." Faith told him.

"What time is it?" Danny groaned.

"Seven – o – nine." Annie read from the clock.

"Where is your aunt Lindsay?" Danny inquired.

"Here." A mumbled reply came from the bathroom along with a hand waved through the door.

"Grandma says we can't open our presents until everyone has breakfast." Faith informed him.

"She's making pancakes."

"I'll be there in a few minutes." Danny told them. That was enough for the twins who jumped off the bed and ran out the room.

Danny looked up to see Lindsay stood in the bathroom doorway, she was already dressed.

"Why do you look so perky for?" Danny inquired.

"It's a reasonable hour in New York." Lindsay reminded him. "And it's Christmas."

"Right."

"Merry Christmas." She kissed him.

"Minty." Danny replied. "Merry Christmas to you too."

Lindsay caught the glint in his eye.

"They'll be back before you even get to think about it buddy. Get up and get dressed."

"Did Matt at least get the same treatment?" Danny asked.

"The boys woke him. But you're lucky you've been allowed to sleep this late, they've been up since 5.30."

"How long have you been up?" Danny inquired.

"A while." Lindsay replied.

"So what did you buy me?"

"Cooking lessons." She gave him a quick peck and climbed off the bed.

"Seriously?" He looked at her.

"No. You can wait like the kids."

"You don't want to know what I got you?"

"I have patience and if you want pancakes you'll need to be quick the go fast."

"Montana." He groaned as she walked away.

Danny walked up behind Matt who was stood watching the family interact from the kitchen doorway.

"Have you ever seen anything like this before?" Matt asked.

"I'm Italian so I'm used to big family gatherings, but no." Danny had to admit.

"It's something."

"Yeah." Danny agreed.

Lindsay leant and whispered something to Grace. The little girl climbed off her chair and walked over to the two men.

"You want pancakes?" She asked.

"Pancakes would be good." Matt told her.

"Sounds great." Danny added.

"You can share mine, I've got chocolate syrup." Grace told Danny.

"Looks like you've got competition sis." Adam nudged his sister.

"I think I'll survive."

TBC


	136. Chapter 136

A/N: I was going to write a scene with them opening their Christmas gifts but I thought for a day and a half about what they could give each other and I couldn't decide, but while thinking I came up with a better idea, and I think by the end of the chapter you'll hopefully agree with me.

Christmas day went quickly with presents being opened, toys and gadgets to be played with, clothes to be tried on.

The following day was a little calmer.

The phone rang; Becky who was nearest grabbed it.

"Monroe residence." She answered. "Oh hi, happy holidays to you too…. No he's here okay sure…" She agreed. "It's for you." She held the phone out to Danny.

"For me?" Danny questioned.

"It's your boss."

"Mac?" Danny said into the phone. "Please don't tell me you need us to come back early because I doubt we'd be able to get a flight with 4 ft of snow outside…. Okay, hang on a second." He got up. "Excuse me." He left the room.

"Any idea what Mac wanted?" Lindsay asked her sister.

"No. He just wanted to talk to Danny."

"Strange." Lindsay said.

Danny returned about five minutes later.

"Everything okay?" Lindsay inquired.

"Everything is fine. Do you want to go and take a walk?" He suggested.

"Sure let me grab my coat." Lindsay guessed Mac had told him something he didn't feel comfortable mentioning in front of her family.

"So what's going on?" Lindsay asked when they were outside.

"It's over."

"What!" Lindsay was confused.

"Okay that didn't come out the way I meant it. Mac said to tell you it was over. They caught the guillotine guy."

"They caught him." Lindsay repeated. "Where?"

"Baton Rouge. He did it again but this time a patrol car saw him acting suspiciously for Christmas Day, he was in an alley trying to dump a body. There was a shoot out he's dead."

"And they're sure he's the right guy?"

"He matches the description and he had a note address to you in his possession."

"Who was he?"

"They still don't know. The van he was using had plates taken from a car that was crushed in an accident three weeks ago. Vin numbers have been erased."

"They're sure?"

"His prints also matched the ones on the paper the bomb he sent you was wrapped in." Danny told her. "It's over."

Danny pulled her into a tight hug.

"I can't believe it's over."

"I know." He whispered in her ear, when he pulled back he tucked a loose hair behind her ear.

"What?" Lindsay said when he looked at her.

"I think it's time I gave you this. I've been carrying it around for a couple months waiting for a good time." He pulled something out of his pocket and slipped it into her hand.

Lindsay looked down at the small ring box in her hand, hesitantly she opened it. She looked at the ring and then at Danny.

"Hawkes said you wanted to wait until after everything was all over and I know it's not exactly the diamond your sister got. It's actually called Tanzanite, you can only find it in Tanzania and it will run out in about fifteen years and then I guess the price will skyrocket. You didn't strike me as a diamond type but if you don't like it I can take it back and get something else or …."

Lindsay cut him off with a kiss.

"What happened to the straight talking New Yorker I fell in love with?" Lindsay inquired she knew what he was trying to ask but she was getting impatient waiting for the actual question.

"I can do straight talking." Danny paused.

"Danny." Lindsay started.

"I love you Lindsay." He interrupted. "Marry me."

Lindsay threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. Danny stumbled back slightly and then rested his forehead against hers.

"Is that a yes Montana?"

"That's a hell yes Messer." She kissed him again.

TBC


	137. Chapter 137

"I have a crazy idea." Danny told her.

"Other than carrying a really expensive ring around for months?" Lindsay inquired.

"I was waiting for a good time." Danny pointed out.

"So what's your idea?" Lindsay asked.

"What if we got married before we go back to New York?"

"What?"

"I know I said it was crazy and I have no idea if you can get a licence in that time in this state or maybe you want a big white wedding like Becky which is fine too and…"

"You're serious?" Lindsay interrupted.

"Your family is all here, why not?" Danny shrugged.

"What about your parents?"

"Mom will get over it." He replied.

"Okay." Lindsay agreed.

"Okay?"

"Okay." She confirmed. "Let's not tell anyone about this until we know if we can." She told him. "Hold this, I'll go and grab my keys." She kissed and left him holding the ring before she ran inside.

…

"So where are we going?" Danny inquired as they pulled out onto the main road.

"Morgue." Lindsay replied.

"Okay, that's the last place I thought I'd be going on this trip."

"Did you think you'd be getting married?" Lindsay countered.

"Good point." He conceded. "So why are we going to the morgue?"

"My doctor when I was growing up now works for the county coroner, he and Jamie the medical examiner always spend the day after Christmas at the morgue eating leftovers."

"Whatever floats their boats." Danny stated.

"Both their wives died of cancer within two weeks of each other 3 years ago." Lindsay explained. "You'll like them; they have a great small town sense of humour."

"And that differs from a normal sense of humour how?" Danny inquired.

"Let's just say they have a better sense of humour than most New Yorkers."

When they arrived Lindsay pulled into a parking space. She glanced at her hands which were still on the steering wheel.

"Danny."

"Yes?"

"Can I try my ring on now?" Lindsay inquired.

"Sure." Danny pulled the box out of his pocket and handed it to her. Lindsay slipped her glove off and slid the ring on.

"It fits."

"What's the point of being a CSI if you can measure something without someone noticing?" Danny asked.

"Let's go inside."

They walked around to the side entrance. Lindsay tapped a code and the door clicked open.

"They didn't change the code?" Danny asked.

"They haven't changed the code since they got it installed five years ago." Lindsay explained. "Come on." She grabbed his hand and walked him through the building to the room where she heard laughter. "You need to get some better jokes guys." She said when they walked in.

"Why if it isn't Lindsay Monroe." The younger man said. "Joe said you were back for Christmas."

"Hey Jamie, hey Doc." Lindsay smiled.

"The big city seems to be treating you okay." The older man stated.

"I'm doing okay." She agreed. "Danny, this is Doctor Dennis Hayworth and Dr James Jamison. Doc and Jamie." Lindsay introduced them. "Guys this is Danny Messer."

"The New Yorker boyfriend."

"Nice to know word got around town." Danny smiled.

"I'm guessing this isn't a social call." Doc said.

"We decided to see if we could get married before we go back to New York, but for the licence we need…"

"You need a blood test." Doc finished for her. "I know you've have had the shot they need since I'm the one who gave it to you twice."

"Hop up on the table." Jamie told her. "And I'll draw some blood."

"Now why do medical examiners keep telling me that?" Lindsay asked as she shrugged out of her coat.

"Because you're too stubborn to go to a hospital so they're the only doctors I can make you see." Danny replied.

"I guess this could be described as eloping." Doc smiled.

"Doc is a big fan of eloping." Lindsay explained. "He and his wife eloped three days after they met on her 18th birthday."

"Married 43 years before she died." Doc added with a wistful smile.

"That's impressive." Danny replied.

"If you arrange this we're going to want invitations." Jamie told Lindsay.

"We'll see what we can do."

TBC


	138. Chapter 138

Lindsay poured herself some coffee.

After being away from New York, she realised coming back that being here felt as much as being at home as it did being back in Bozeman.

"Hey did you have a nice Christmas?" Stella asked walking and pouring herself some coffee.

"It's great; it was great to see my family again."

"How did Danny find it?"

"My nieces and nephews love him. He made snowmen with them and watched movies. My niece Grace has a crush on him." Lindsay smiled.

"Lindsay." Stella noticed the ring; she walked over and looked at Lindsay's hand. "Danny proposed?"

"Yes."

"That's not amethyst is it?"

"Tanzanite apparently you could only get it from Tanzania and there are only a few more years worth left." Lindsay explained. "But Danny could tell you more."

Stella noticed the matching 18 carat white gold band next to the engagement ring.

"You got married?" Stella stated.

"Yes." Lindsay confirmed.

Stella automatically hugged.

"Tell me everything."

CSI NY CSI NY

"So what is Montana like?" Flack asked.

"Too damn quiet." Danny replied. "But being able to see nothing but fields and mountains and the odd blip of a house in the distance is nice."

"Lindsay did tell you that the fresh air would be good for you." Flack pointed out.

"In all honesty I didn't think families spent their Christmases like that. But it's was nice."

"You didn't get a black eye so I'm guessing her family liked you."

"Her nieces and nephews are great kids. Her brother Adam is a good guy too."

"Danny." Stella called as she spotted Danny.

"Hey Stel get anything nice for Christmas?" Danny inquired.

"Congratulations." She gave him a hug.

"Thanks." Danny replied.

"Did I miss something?" Flack inquired.

"The reason you're a homicide detective not a CSI." Stella lifted up Danny's left hand so Flack could see the wedding band that now adorned it.

"You got married?" Flack questioned.

"Yeah." Danny replied.

"When?"

"Yesterday." Danny replied.

"You weren't even engaged the last time I saw you." Flack stated.

"If it helps we were only engaged about twenty hours." Danny offered as a consolation.

"How long have we been friends you couldn't have at least called?" Flack inquired.

"We didn't exactly call anyone. We drove and saw the county corner and medical examiner since Lindsay knew them for the blood test she needed to so we could get a licence. We saw a couple people at the county clerks' office she knows to get a licence, we talk to the minister at the church she grew up in who could marry us yesterday morning. Then we went and told her family if they didn't have anything better to do we were getting married."

"Did she at least get a dress?" Flack asked.

"She wore her Mom's dress." Danny replied.

"Do you at have pictures?"

"We have a whole memory card full of them and video back at the apartment, but we didn't get back home until 2 am after there were delays due to the weather. We'll bring them in tomorrow."

"Danny my office." Mac stood at the other end of the hall.

"I guess he got the change of marital status paperwork I left on his desk. I'll see you guys later." Danny left.

Hawkes walked up.

"What did I miss?" He inquired.

"Lindsay and Danny managed to get engaged and married over Christmas. What did you do?" Flack asked.

"What?"

"That's what I said."

TBC


	139. Chapter 139

"What's up?" Danny asked when he was in Mac's office.

"You were supposed to give the Mastrino file before you left." Mac told him. "The DA's office is going to need it by Monday."

"It's still on my desk; I'll grab it for you."

"How did Lindsay take the news?" Mac asked.

"Pretty well, she's obviously relieved. Do we have a name on the guy yet?"

"Not yet." Mac replied. "The FBI are keeping me up to date, I'll let you know when I hear any more."

"Thanks."

"That's it." Mac told him.

"That's it?" Danny repeated.

"Yes."

"You didn't call me in here to discuss the paperwork I left on your desk earlier?" Danny questioned.

"What paperwork?" Mac asked.

"The paperwork that says Lindsay and I got married yesterday."

"You got married?" Mac repeated.

"Yes."

"You eloped?"

"We're still having a debate over whether you can actually call it eloping if you get married in a church and Lindsay's family were there." Danny replied. "But yes."

"Congratulations."

"Thanks. I'll go and grab you that file."

CSI NY CSI NY

"You got married?" Hawkes walked up behind Lindsay.

"Why does everyone say it in that tone? Why can't they just say congratulations and be happy for us."

"Congratulations and I am happy for you. It's just a bit of a surprise. It's not like we had any warning."

"I didn't get much warning either." Lindsay admitted. "One minute he's telling me they caught the guillotine guy, the next he's proposing and then he suggests we get married before we come back to New York."

"Danny suggested it?" Hawkes questioned.

"Honestly I thought he was joking at first, but then again he managed to babble his way through the proposal." Lindsay shrugged. "He mentioned something about you having something to do with it."

"Me?" Hawkes questioned.

"That's what he said."

Hawkes thought for a moment.

"Do you remember that conversation we had about marriage when Becky was here?" Hawkes asked.

"Yes."

"I mentioned that to Danny. That's all I can think of."

"Whatever you said got him thinking so I guess thank you."

"So what do you want as a wedding present?" Hawkes inquired.

"I've only got married twenty-four hours ago I haven't had a chance to think about that." Lindsay admitted. "Just buy what you want as long as it's not a toaster."

"Now that is an interesting offer, I could buy something you'd really hate."

"I think you know us better than that." Lindsay assured him as her pager went off. "I've got a case."

She slipped her engagement ring off and put it on the chain with the Montana pendent. Hawkes looked at her.

"It will be hell on gloves." She shrugged.

"True."

"I'll see you later and if you see Danny tell him I'll let him know about lunch."

"Will do."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey Lindsay." Detective Maka greeted her when she arrived at the scene. "Have a nice Christmas."

"Yes thank you. I got married. So what have we got?"

"Hang on. You got married?" Maka stopped her.

"Yesterday." Lindsay replied. "So what happened?"

TBC


	140. Chapter 140

"Go ahead and ask her." Flack prompted Danny.

"Ask me what?" Lindsay eyed the three men who stood before her.

"Flack and Hawkes want to take me out for a belated bachelor party. They thought I should ask you first." Danny explained.

"You can have him Friday night. I have to work late so go and do whatever it is guys do at bachelor parties. Just don't get arrest for anything and that includes public nudity, don't go anywhere where anyone dies and don't get so drunk you have to call me to pick you up because you're all on your own."

"Sounds reasonable." Hawkes agreed.

"How do you fall on strippers?" Flack inquired.

"The last strippers I saw that weren't work related were the Bozeman fire-fighters for a charity event. They weren't half bad." Lindsay recalled.

Danny glared at her.

"As long as you're just looking and not touching. I won't ask if you don't tell." Her pager went off. "Maka got our suspect if you'll excuse me."

Danny winked at her as she walked passed him.

"That was a lot easier than I thought it would be." Flack admitted.

"You thought she'd say no?" Danny asked.

"Well no, but…"

"She'll just use it an excuse to go out with Stella for the evening."

"Don't you three have anything better to do than stand around?" Mac walked by.

"Just waiting on Adam for some results." Danny's pager went off. "That will be them excuse me."

"So Mac do you have plans Friday night?" Flack inquired.

"Why?"

"We're throwing Danny a belated bachelor party. We already cleared it with Lindsay." Hawkes explained.

"I should be available."

"We'll let you know what the plans are."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Lindsay." Stella caught up with her.

"Hey Stella."

"I hear the guys are taking Danny out for a belated bachelor party Friday night."

"They asked my permission." Lindsay pointed out. "Not that I don't think they would have done it anyway but at least this way I got to put a few rules on it."

"You know what this means don't you?"

"You get to throw me a bachelorette party." Lindsay guessed.

"That too, but since I can probably get Flack to tell me where they are going how about we send them something."

"What do you have in mind?" Lindsay was intrigued.

"Here's what I was thinking."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Okay open your eyes." Stella told Lindsay and Danny.

They opened their eyes to see a large cake that said 'Congratulations Lindsay and Danny' on it.

"It's the best we could do on short notice." Stella told her.

"It's great." Lindsay assured her.

"Cake was the one thing missing." Danny said reaching out to taste the frosting. Lindsay slapped his hand away. "Hey!"

"This is what you get for getting married." Flack patted him on the back.

"Will someone cut the damn cake already?" Danny asked.

"He's impatient." Hawkes commented.

"His patience wasn't too bad with my nieces and nephews. He made a pretty decent snowman with them."

"Only until someone decided to drop snow down my neck, and I had to drop them on their ass."

"Is this where I mention that you got annoyed when you lost at Mousetrap and Rudolph Monopoly to a six year old?"

"I thought you weren't going to mention that."

The others watched as they playfully bickered.

"So does someone have a knife for this cake?" Lindsay asked.

"Sure." Stella replied.

TBC


	141. Chapter 141

Lindsay and Danny crashed through the door of their apartment lips locked. Danny kicked the door closed behind them as he helped Lindsay out of her coat.

"Danny wait." Lindsay pulled away.

"What?"

"There's something we need to do first."

"We got married, I carried you over the threshold last night, we had cake." He kissed the side of her neck. "Consummating this sounds like a good plan."

"Danny." Lindsay sighed.

"You're killing me Montana." He rested his forehead against hers. "What do we need to do?"

Lindsay felt around with her hand and grabbed a photo frame and handed it to him.

"Way to kill a mood." He said looking at a photograph of his parents.

"You need to call and tell them."

"What I had in mind was a lot more fun."

"Danny you need to tell your parents we got married before someone else tells them."

"Who is going to tell them?" Danny asked.

"You never know." She kissed him. "I'll make it up to you. I'll slip into something a lot less comfortable which hopefully I won't be wearing for long."

"You are trying to kill."

"Not yet, you haven't signed over your life insurance and benefits to me yet."

"So that's why you married me for the money." Danny joked.

"Why else?" Lindsay kissed him. "Call your Mom."

"Yes dear." He teased.

Lindsay disappeared into the bedroom.

Danny grabbed the phone and dialled the number for his parents' house.

"_Hello." _Carrie answered.

"Hey Ma it's Danny."

"_Did you have a nice Christmas?"_

"Yes Ma, thanks for the present it was great."

"_I can tell Lindsay picked our gift." C_arrie commented.

"I think that's just a woman thing. They are better at choosing gifts."

"_I'm guessing this isn't just a social call,"_

"I've got some news."

"_Lindsay is pregnant."_ Carrie guessed.

"No Ma she's not."

"_You got engaged?" Carried guessed again._

"Sort of." Danny replied.

"_How do you sort of get engaged?"_

"We got married yesterday." Danny admitted.

"_WHAT!" _She screamed causing Danny to hold the phone away his ear.

"We got married yesterday."

"_And you're just telling me now."_

"It kind of happened and then we spent the rest of the day trying to get back to New York, snow in the mid west was causing lots of delays so we didn't get home until 2 and then we had to be at work by 8. We just got home."

"_Let me talk to Lindsay."_

"She's taking a shower." Danny lied. "Ma we'll come over at the weekend and bring you pictures and the video and tell you everything I promise."

"_Daniel."_

"Ma, I promise we'll tell you everything this weekend. It's just been a long day at work."

"_I'll see you both this weekend and send Lindsay my love."_

"I will."

"_And Danny."_

"Yes?" Danny asked.

"_Congratulations." _

"Thank you." Danny finished the call.

"I'm taking a shower?" Lindsay leant against the doorframe.

"I was trying to get her off the phone." Danny admitted looking his wife up and down. "You look good."

"You look over dressed." Lindsay countered.

"I'm sure you can help me take care of that."

TBC


	142. Chapter 142

On Friday night the guys gathered around for Danny's bachelor party.

They were all on their second beer when a woman in a police uniform walked over. For all the men at the table they knew it wasn't a standard issue NYPD uniform.

As far Flack knew no-one had booked a stripper.

"Detective Danny Messer?" The woman asked.

"Yes." Danny replied.

"I have a warrant for your arrest." She handed it to him.

Danny quickly read it and smirked.

"Then I guess you'd better put me in those handcuffs." He held out hands to her.

"Did any of you order a stripper?" Flack whispered to Mac and Hawkes.

"No." Hawkes replied.

Mac picked up the warrant from the table and read it.

"This has Stella written all over it." Mac commented.

"You think Stella would send Danny a stripper?" Hawkes questioned.

"There is what he's being arrested for and then a note. '_Have fun guys and don't get arrested for real. Love the women of the NYPD crime lab.'" _He read. "It's in Stella's handwriting."

"So when you said it had Stella written all over it you meant literally." Flack shook his head lightly.

"Maybe Lindsay would like a picture?" Hawkes suggested.

Flack pulled his cell phone from his belt and took a picture of Danny in handcuffs wearing the stripper's hat and sent it to Lindsay.

Thirty seconds later his phone rang.

"Flack." He answered.

"_Hey Don. Nice picture."_

"You're not worried?"

"_Be nice to the stripper. Her name is Julie she has three kids under five and her husband died last year so she does this a couple times a week and makes as much as she would if she worked in a connivance store 40 hours a week and gets to spent time with her kids."_

"You know she's a stripper and you know her life story?" Flack questioned.

"_I meet her when Stella and I paid her and gave her the warrant." _Lindsay pointed out. _"Give her a decent tip."_

"You know most wives don't send a stripper to their husband's bachelor party." Flack pointed out.

"_Just how many men do you think have their bachelor party after they get married?"_ Lindsay countered.

"Touché." Flack conceded.

"_One other thing before I go."_

"What's that?" Flack asked.

"_Did you really think we'd let you have the party unsupervised?"_

"What?"

"_Do you really think that boom box is just a boom box?" _

"You bugged the boom box."

"_And you should have picked somewhere where the owner of the bar wasn't a friend of Stella's and is going to give us a copy of the surveillance camera footage."_

"So it's like that is it?" Flack asked.

"_Have fun and don't let him get too drunk. We have to go and see his parents tomorrow."_

"Have a good night as well."

"_I have to go and process a teenage gang banger."_

"Dead or alive?" Flack asked.

"_Alive and the guy he shot is in critical condition."_ Lindsay replied. "_Night."_

"Night." They hung up.

"That was Lindsay?" Hawkes asked.

"Apparently she and Stella had a nice chat with the stripper, whose name is Julie by the way, when they paid her."

"Sounds about right." Mac smiled.

"They also have people watching us so we don't get into trouble."

"Now that I believe." Hawkes smiled too. "We're going to have to send something to her bachelorette party."

"Stella won't tell you what she is planning." Mac informed them. "She's a lot smarter than that."

TBC


	143. Chapter 143

"Do you think he bought it?" Stella asked Lindsay.

"I'd definitely say that Flack thinks we're watching them."

"Men are so gullible." Stella smiled.

"Well the owner did offer us the surveillance camera footage if we wanted it." Lindsay pointed out.

"I'm sure they will be well behaved."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay didn't get home until 4 am. She was surprised to find Flack and Hawkes asleep in haphazard positions in her living room.

Lindsay was too tired to care, she simply went to bed.

A few hours later she woke up to find a wet sensation on the back of her neck. It took her a few seconds to realise that Danny was drooling on the back of her neck. She extracted herself from his grasp. She need more than a few hours sleep, but to get that she needed to get the detective and the doctor out of her living and Danny to wake up.

Rather than blasting music to wake them up she decided to take an alternate. She slipped on some clothes and grabbed a bottle of aspirin from the bathroom.

Once in the kitchen, she poured three glasses of water. Then set about making breakfast.

Once Lindsay was done then she banged a wooden spoon against pan. Flack and Hawkes woke up and Danny appeared sleepily in the doorway.

"Do you have to make so much noise?" Danny inquired.

"There is aspirin and water, orange juice, coffee and breakfast for all of you on the table. Eat, drink and be quiet because I didn't get home until four and I'm going back to bed for six hours." Lindsay walked back towards the bedroom.

"Hey." Danny moved to kiss her.

"I don't think so." Lindsay ducked round him. "Not until you've at least brushed your teeth."

"Sweet dreams." Danny told her.

Lindsay closed the bedroom behind her.

"Did you do something to piss her off?" Flack inquired.

"She's not pissed off, she's tired." Danny yawned. "If she was pissed off she would have put headphones on us and cranked up Billy Ray Cyrus not made us breakfast."

The guys had ended up more than legal drunk, but not drunk enough that they had raging hangovers.

They all sat around and tucked into the breakfast Lindsay had made them.

"There was something you should probably know." Flack said.

"What?"

"Lindsay and Stella sent the stripper."

"I know." Danny replied. "Stella wrote the note on the warrant and she wouldn't have done it without checking with Lindsay first."

"You knew?" Hawkes questioned.

"I've known Stella a long time I recognise her handwriting."

"Did you know Lindsay put a camera in the stripper's boom box and is getting the surveillance camera footage from the bar?" Flack inquired.

"No she didn't and she's not." Danny sat back in his chair.

"She told me last night."

"She told you that so you would make sure nothing happened that you wouldn't want her to see." Danny explained.

"She played me?" Flack asked.

"Like a fiddle." Danny smirked at his wife's sneaky nature.

"How can you be so sure?" Hawkes inquired.

"I know her and I know her sister-in-law."

"What does her sister-in-law have to do with it?"

"Adam's wife Lucy had a camera at Adam's bachelor party. I've seen the tape."

"So what makes you think Lindsay wouldn't tape it?"

"Because she said she'd never do that to someone, it's all about trust."

"She doesn't trust you?" Flack asked.

"No she doesn't trust you not to pull some stunt." Danny corrected.

TBC


	144. Chapter 144

Lindsay and Danny sat on the couch watching the TV to drop in Times Square. It was New Years Eve and as Lindsay was on call they were at home rather than in Times Square itself.

"So any New Years resolutions?" Lindsay asked.

"Not to ever make any more new years resolutions ever again. I broke the one I made last year within by the end of January first."

"What was that?"

"No comment." Danny replied.

"No comment?"

"Let's just say it involved you and I'm never going to tell you."

"You know I have ways of making you talk." Lindsay slowly walked her fingers up his chest.

"I'm sure you do, but I can withstand the torture."

"Do you want to bet on that?"

"That would be illegal detective." He kissed her.

"_5….4….3….2…..1" _The TV counted down but Lindsay and Danny didn't care.

Danny was in the process of unbuttoning Lindsay's shirt when her pager went off.

"Sorry." She apologised checking it. "Duty calls."

She quickly did up her buttons; she got up and put her coat on.

Danny grabbed his coat.

"Where are you going?"

"I can help process." He shrugged. "It's better than sitting around waiting for you to get home."

"You don't have."

"I don't mind."

"Grab your gun and badge." Lindsay told him.

"Yes dear."

Lindsay rolled her eyes and grabbed their kits from the closet.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey Mac. Happy New Year." Danny told him.

"Danny what are you doing here?" Mac was surprised to see him.

"He didn't want to sit home alone." Lindsay explained.

"Well happy new year to both of you."

"What've we got?" Danny inquired.

"Helena Paulson. The hotel was having a party; one of the women went into the bathroom just before midnight and found her. Slashed across the throat with a champagne glass found next to her body. PD is questioning all the guests." Mac's pager went off. "Are you two okay to handle this if I go and take care of this other body?"

"Go ahead." Danny told him. "We've got it covered."

"We'll be fine." Lindsay assured him.

They made their way back to the bathroom.

"I wasn't planning on spending the first day of the new year in a women's bathroom." Danny remarked.

"I don't think she was planning on ringing out last year by dying in a women's bathroom." Lindsay countered. "Especially in a dress that's a Vera Wang and worth about four thousand dollars. That necklace looks like real sapphires. Those shoes are Jimmy Choo worth about $600 and that's a Prada bag."

"I guess we can rule out robbery as a motive." He paused. "Since when do know designer clothes?"

"I watched the New York Fashion Week shows on E!." Lindsay shrugged. "And I actually own a pair of Jimmy Choos."

"You do?" Danny questioned. "Have I seen them?"

"No. They are in a box in the back of the closet. I've only ever worn them once."

"Uncomfortable?" Danny guessed.

"They cost six hundred bucks, I'm not going to wear them out and ruin them. It took my six months to save up to buy them."

"What's the point of paying that much for a pair of shoes that you never wear? You could have bought what 8, 10 pairs of normal heels which you could wear."

"It's not something that a guy would get." Lindsay replied. "It's kind of like women not understanding why it's okay for a guy to pat another guy on the butt when they've in the middle of a football game but not at any other time in case someone thinks they are gay."

"Right." Danny looked at her.

"Ask Stella." Lindsay suggested as she started taking photographs.

TBC


	145. Chapter 145

"Hey Montana tox screen is back." Danny walked into the room with his head down.

"Happy New Year to you too Danny." Flack said.

"Sorry. Happy New Year." He replied handing Lindsay the tox report.

"I thought you didn't start until eight this morning." Flack questioned.

"He couldn't sit home alone when I got paged last night." Lindsay read the report. "How can she have a 0.0 blood alcohol count?"

"I guess whatever that alcohol smell was what was in the glass." Danny remarked.

"Champagne." Lindsay replied. "And not the cheap kind."

"What about her clothes?"

"Haven't checked those yet."

"I'll just stand here and wait for someone to remember I'm in the room." Flack stated.

"Sorry." Lindsay apologised. "We've got a woman who died in a bathroom when her throat was slit with a champagne glass."

"A champagne glass?" Flack questioned as Lindsay's cell phone went off.

"Monroe." She answered. "No a champagne glass… Seriously… I guess we'll be heading back to the hotel…. Thanks Sid."

"What did Sid want?" Danny asked.

"He found green glass in the wound. He says she throat was probably cut with a champagne bottle rather than a glass."

"Okay, on three." Danny told her. "One two three."

Danny pulled rock, Lindsay pulled paper.

"Damn!" Danny muttered.

"Ha!" She broke into a big smile.

"Did I miss something?" Flack inquired.

"Danny gets to go dumpster diving if necessary." Lindsay replied. "I'm driving."

"You drove earlier." Danny pointed.

"Which is why I still have the keys. See you later Don."

"Yeah."

CSI NY CSI NY

"So Sid what can you tell?" Lindsay returned after they had gone back to the hotel to retrieve the bottles. Danny had had to go into the dumpster and was currently taking a shower.

"She died of exsanguination caused by her carotid artery being slashed."

"By green glass."

"I sent the glass I pulled out of the wound upstairs."

"So some slashed her throat with a green glass bottle and then covered the broken champagne glass with blood."

"It's possible that someone realised that the champagne glass would shatter and used something strong like the bottle." Sid hypothesised.

"Was she facing her attacker or did they come up behind her?" Lindsay inquired.

"I'd say from behind." Sid pointed out areas of the wound.

"Would a woman have enough upper body strength to do something like this?"

"If she was a weightlifter perhaps." Sid replied. "From the angle and depth of the wound I'd say you're looking for a left handed male, who is at least six feet tall."

"Could she have been on her knees?"

"There are no bruises on her knees, there are a few defensive marks, but the wound suggests she didn't have time to react."

"So it was someone she knew and trusted."

"I sent her fingernail scrapings to DNA." Sid added. "This was not the way she would have wanted to start the New Year."

"How did you celebrate New Years?"

"With a woman I met a few weeks ago. Lovely lady charming, beautiful."

"Good for you."

"How did you spend New Years?" Sid inquired.

"Danny was trying to get me out of my shirt when my pager went off." Lindsay replied.

"Was he succeeding?"

"We'll never know." Lindsay shrugged. "You know you're to blame."

"For Danny trying to get you out of your shirt?"

"For Danny and I being together. Do you remember when you told me that Danny called me Montana because he had a crush on me? That was a catalyst for us being together so I guess I'm trying to say thank you."

"You're welcome." Sid replied.

"I should get back upstairs."

TBC


	146. Chapter 146

Lindsay was studying the photographs she had taken looking for something she had missed.

"Lindsay." Adam appeared in the doorway. "There's something you should see."

"Okay." She left the photographs on the screen and followed him into another room.

"Turn it up." He told Simon another of the techs. The TV which was tuned to the news was turned up.

"_The 'Guillotine Killer' as dubbed by the FBI Agents investigating the case have confirmed the name of the suspect who was killed during a gun battle with police officers in Baton Rouge on Christmas Day as Giles David Penterghast. FBI officials are not looking anyone else in connection with the string of killing in New York, Seattle and Baton Rouge. Penterghast's victims who were members of a cult run by the ex-doomsday cult member, had their heads sliced off with a guillotine before they were placed separately in locations in each city in clean alleys next to trash cans. Penterghast was in the process of dumping more human remains when he was killed. Penterghast taunted female Crime Scene Unit members after dousing them with a powdered form of Rohypnol and then in one case sending a New York detective a bomb. Penterghast…" _ The news report continued.

"Turn it off." Lindsay told Simon.

"Are you okay?" Adam asked looking at how pale she had gotten.

"The news is always so depressing." She replied. "I have to get back to work."

Lindsay headed back to the lab fighting the urge to crying.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"Miss Monroe?" There was a tap on the door.

Lindsay looked over to the man dressed in a suit and instantly knew what he did for a living.

"It's Mrs Messer or Detective Monroe." Lindsay corrected. "Since we're in the NYPD crime lab, is Detective. And you are?"

"Special Agent Jareau, FBI. I need to ask you some more questions…"

"You mean about the guy who tried to kill me by sending me a bomb whose name I had to learn from the news?" Lindsay asked.

"Detective…" He stepped further into the room.

"No." Lindsay held up her hand to stop him. "I answered all the questions the six times your colleagues asked me before and I don't have any more information. So since you didn't have the courtesy to call me before it was plastered all over the news, I'm not going to allow you to interrogate me again. So get the hell out of our lab before you contaminate evidence."

"Is everything okay in here?" Mac appeared at the other door.

"Special Agent Jareau was just leaving." Lindsay told him.

"Barry." Mac called to the tech who was walking past. "Can you show Agent Jareau out please?"

"Sure. This way." Barry prompted.

"Are you okay?" Mac caught Lindsay's eye.

"I honestly don't know." Lindsay admitted.

"Seeing it on TV must have been a shock."

"I just need a few minutes."

"Why don't you take a break?" Mac suggested. "Go up to the roof and get some air."

"You want me to see the counsellor don't you?" Lindsay guessed.

"I'm not going to force you but it would probably be a good idea."

"Okay. I'll make an appointment." Lindsay agreed.

"Good. Take as long as you need."

Lindsay went and grabbed her coat and made her way up to the roof. For January 3rd it was still freezing.

She was only up there for a few minutes alone when she heard the door open.

"Hey how ya doing?" Danny walked over to her. "I hear you threw an FBI Agent out the lab."

Lindsay looked at him.

"Come here." He pulled her into his arms as she broke down into tears. "It's okay, I got ya."

"I don't know why I'm crying." Lindsay mumbled into his shirt.

"Seeing the face of the guy who tried to kill you and hearing his name is enough to make anyone cry." Danny kissed the top of her head.

"I'm covering you with mascara."

"You can wash my shirt for me." Danny told her pulling his jacket around her to keep her warm.

Lindsay giggled slightly.

"Everything is going to be okay." Danny assured her. "If he wasn't dead, I'd go and kill him for you myself."

"That's sweet, but totally illegal."

"It's the thought that counts."

"Just hold me for a while." Lindsay requested.

"For as long as you need."

TBC


	147. Chapter 147

Lindsay knocked on the counsellor's office.

"Please come in." A man opened the door.

"Where's Doctor Hunter?" Lindsay asked.

"She's away at a conference. I'm Doctor Pritchard; I'm filling in for her. Is that okay?"

"It's fine." Lindsay replied.

"Please take a seat Detective."

"Lindsay is fine." She told him.

"Mark." He supplied as he closed the door and took his seat. "So do you want to tell me why you're here today?"

"I threw an FBI Agent out the building." Lindsay admitted.

"Why did you do that?"

"Because they want to ask me the same questions they've been asking me for the last four months and I can't tell them anything I haven't told them before because I don't know anything more."

"Why do they FBI need to question you?" Mark inquired.

"Did you read about the Guillotine Killer in the papers or see stories about him on the news?" Lindsay asked.

"Yes." He replied.

"I was the first CSI on the scene when the first head was found in New York. At one of the scenes he grabbed my arm and covered my arm in a powered for of Rohypnol, I breathed it in and lost 20 hours." Lindsay explained. "He sent me a letter gloating about it. Then a couple months ago he sent me a bomb in the mail. Only by the grace of god and a loose wire I didn't blow up when I opened it. When they found him and he was killed on Christmas day he apparently had a note addressed to me in his possession."

"Do you know what it said?"

"I don't want to know. It's bad enough I had to find out his name from the news."

"When did you find out about his death?"

"The day after Christmas." Lindsay replied. "Mac called Danny while we were at my parents' house in Montana and told him. He told me."

"How did you feel when you found out that he was dead?"

"Relieved." Lindsay admitted. "I guess seeing it on the news just brought it back."

"Let's start with when you heard the news that he'd been found and had been shot dead by the cops who were attempting to arrest him."

"Mac called to speak to Danny. He took the call and when he'd finished he suggested we go outside. It had been snowing for a couple days so we were all bundled up in coats. He told everything Mac had told him."

"What happened then?" Mark prompted.

"He hugged me. Then a few minutes later he proposed."

"Since you're wearing a wedding band I presume you've gotten married in the last few weeks."

"The next day. Danny suggested see if we could do it before left Montana."

"So you didn't have time to process the fact that the man who had drugged you and tried to blow you up was dead?" Mark asked.

"I guess when you put it like that."

"Do you regret getting married so quickly?" Mark inquired.

"No." Lindsay replied. "I like being married."

"But do you regret not having time to plan anything?"

"My family were there, I wore my Mom's wedding dress, and we got married in the church where I grew up, the only thing that I regret was that my friends and Danny's family in New York weren't there. But they're all fine with it."

"Okay." Mark nodded.

"You think I got married to fast without thinking over the consequences."

"I don't know you or your husband it may have been the right thing for you, but I do think you needed some time to process everything in your head and I think you've been putting it off. Seeing the news report and the FBI Agent arriving just reminded you that you need to process everything that happened, to deal with it and move on."

"I think I prefer the priest." Lindsay said.

"Are you Catholic?"

"No." Lindsay replied. "But I went for a walk after the bomb arrived and I ran ended up in this Catholic church. The priest let me talk things over with him."

"You still need to process this new information. I can help you do that."

TBC


	148. Chapter 148

"So how was it?" Danny was leaning against a wall waiting for Lindsay when she came out.

"I have to come back on Monday." Lindsay replied. "He thinks I have some issues to deal with."

"Don't we all?"

"He thinks we got married too quickly."

"We knew each other for eighteen months before we got married, that's a lot longer than some people." Danny pointed out.

"He thinks I allowed us to get married so quickly so I had something to distract me so I didn't have to deal with everything."

"What do you think?" Danny stopped her and turned her so she was looking at him.

"I think marrying you was the most sensible thing I've done in a long time."

Danny kissed her.

"I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me." He smiled.

"What about the time I said…" She whispered the rest of her sentence into his ear as she ran her hand across his butt.

"That too." Danny agreed. "Come on." He grabbed her hand. "I'll buy you dinner Montana."

"Dinner sounds good, what did you have in mind?" Lindsay inquired.

"Anything you like as long as it comes from the Chinese place a couple blocks away."

"You know what I think I'm in the mood for Chinese food."

"Good choice." He smiled. "I'm starving."

"When aren't you?"

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey Lindsay." Stella caught up with her the next morning. "I've sort out the plans for Saturday."

"Good." Lindsay replied. "I wouldn't mention what they are around here, the guys tend to have big ears and I think Flack wants to get payback for me telling him we were spying on Danny's bachelor party."

"Flack's not that vindictive."

"Not vindictive, childish." Lindsay corrected. "And Don you can come out now."

"How did you know I was here?" He stepped out of one other rooms.

"The walls are made of glass." Stella reminded him.

"And you shouldn't wear aftershave around the lab, it can contaminate evidence." Lindsay added.

"I didn't put any on." Flack sniffed his shirt.

"Been near anyone who over used their aftershave?" Stella asked.

"Only one of the detectives at the precinct."

"Just how close did you get?" Lindsay inquired.

"Not that close." He looked at her.

"Good, because it's more liable to repel women than attract them." Lindsay told him.

"It's that bad?" Flack asked.

"It's not good." Stella patted his arm.

"Were you looking for someone?" Lindsay inquired.

"Hawkes."

"He went to see Marty; he had something he wanted to show him on the body." Lindsay replied.

"I'll go and find him." Flack left them.

"That's one way of getting rid of him." Stella flapped her hand in front of her face.

"Just think how much that detective must have on." Lindsay pointed out.

"I think I'd rather just confess to something than spend time with him in an interrogation room."

"I'd agree with you there." Lindsay nodded. "Coffee?"

"Sounds good." They headed to the break room. "So how did it go with the counsellor?"

"I used getting married as a distraction so I didn't have to deal with everything." Lindsay replied.

"What do shrinks know?" Stella asked.

"I'm going back on Monday." Lindsay admitted.

"You know if you ever want to talk about anything…" Stella offered.

"Thanks." Lindsay replied.

TBC


	149. Chapter 149

"So what do you have planned for tomorrow?" Danny asked Stella as they worked a scene.

"Danny I wouldn't tell Flack what I have planned why do you think I'll tell you?"

"Because you like me better than Flack?" Danny smiled at her.

"Do you really think that would work?" Stella asked.

"No, but it was worth a shot."

"Don't worry; we're not doing anything you wouldn't approve of."

"And what exactly do you think I wouldn't approve of?" Danny asked.

"Nice try but no cigar."

Danny shrugged.

"Don't worry there will be no getting arrested for anything including public nudity, no going anywhere where there are dead people, no getting so drunk that we have to call you to come and pick us up and don't worry there won't be any strippers."

"Do all women have those rules for parties?" Danny asked. "Or did Lindsay tell you the rules she set for my bachelor party."

"Danny we're going out during the day, just how drunk and disorderly do you think we'd get?"

"Women can get pretty rowdy sometimes." Danny pointed out.

"Have a little faith and trust we know better."

"Lindsay I trust, but you." Danny said. "I heard what happened that time you took Claire out."

"In my defence that wasn't my fault." Stella protested.

"I don't think Mac saw it that way." Danny remarked.

"Don't worry we're not leaving the state or the country."

"Good." Danny replied.

CSI NY CSI NY

"So where are you going for your bachelorette party?" Mac asked Lindsay as they processed their scene.

"If we're not going to tell Danny or Don why do you think well tell you?" Lindsay inquired.

"You don't know do you?" Mac looked at her.

"Not a clue." Lindsay smiled. "We figure if Stella was the only one who knew the exact location no-one else would find out."

"I'll make sure they don't try to track the GPS chips in your phones."

"Danny wouldn't." Lindsay said.

"What about Don?" Mac looked at her.

"This is what I get for telling him we were getting the surveillance feed from the bachelor party isn't it?"

"Don't worry; I think Stella learned her lesson years ago."

"Her lesson about what?"

"She and my wife Claire went out for the day, I was working a case so I was at the lab all night. The first I know about anything I get a call from Claire."

"Why what happened?"

"They needed me to buy them plane tickets home; somehow they'd ended up in New Mexico."

"New Mexico?"

"Neither of them were big on the details."

"Sounds like the time I went to Venice Beach."

"What happened when you went to Venice Beach?" Mac inquired.

"That story is going with me to the grave." Lindsay replied. "And I've got blood over here."

"How much?"

"It's arterial and by the looks of things goes over most of this wall." Lindsay continued to stray Luminol over the wall. "Why do people thinking painting over blood spray with cheap paint will hide it?"

"Out of sight out of mind." Mac suggested.

"The dead body under the floorboards wasn't enough?"

"Once we find out who she is, we'll have a few more answers." Mac replied.

Lindsay's cell phone rang.

"Monroe." She answered standing up. "What number?... Okay I'll be there in a minute." She hung up.

"Everything okay?" Mac asked.

"They found another body, under the floor boards the next floor up. I guess that's what you get for trying to renovate an abandoned building."

"We need to check under all the floorboards in all the apartments." Mac said.

"I'll call Adama and get him to bring the camera down." Lindsay stated.

TBC


	150. Chapter 150

Danny padded to the door half asleep, dressed in only his boxer shorts and a t-shirt. He hadn't even bothered to put on his glasses.

"What?" He pulled opened the door.

"Why Detective Messer this is a surprise." Danny heard the British accent of the DNA tech who was stood with Stella at his door.

"Montana, it's for you." Danny walked back towards the bedroom leaving the door open.

Lindsay came out of the bathroom as the bedroom door shut.

"Hey guys." Lindsay smiled.

"He's in a grumpy mood this morning." Stella commented.

"He has a pain in the butt." Lindsay replied.

"You mean he is a pain in the butt." Stella corrected.

"No I meant it literally. He umm… fell asleep on the couch waiting for me to get home last night, and when I opened the door, he rolled off and connected with the coffee table. He has big bruise on his butt and he kept rolling onto it while he was trying to sleep. He's a little grouchy."

"Are you ready to go?" Stella inquired.

"I just need to grab my purse from the bedroom and I'm ready."

Lindsay disappeared into the bedroom, and grabbed her coat and purse from the chair.

"It's too early." Danny moaned lying face down sprawled across the bed.

"It's just after eight." Lindsay corrected. "You have to be at work at ten, I set the alarm for nine for you. Don't let anyone try tracing our cell phones to figure out where we are and I'll see you later."

"I don't get a kiss goodbye?"

"You'll have to unbury your head from the pillows first."

Danny raised his head and Lindsay gave him a kiss.

"Have fun and don't get into trouble." He told her.

"We'll try not to. Have a good day at work; Mac's going to need some help."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Morning Danny." Flack walked into the room where Danny was running some tests.

"Morning." Danny replied.

"How's the pain in the butt?" Flack bit back a smile.

Danny looked at him.

"How did you know about that?"

"Your wife told Stella, who told Mac who I just saw."

"I'll kill her." Danny muttered.

"Not the best thing to say in front of a homicide detective buddy." Flack told him.

"It's fine."

"So you and Lindsay weren't doing something kinky and that's how you ended up with a bruised butt?"

"No." Danny sighed. "I rolled off the couch and hit my butt on the edge of the coffee table, after I fell asleep waiting for Lindsay to get home."

"Stick to that story."

"What are you doing here anyway?"

"After hours of searching we came up with some id's for Mac and Lindsay's bodies under the floorboards."

"We?" Danny questioned.

"Okay, I wasn't involved in it, but I was heading this way."

"That sounds more likely."

"So did they tell you where they were going?" Flack asked.

"No." Danny replied.

"You didn't ask?"

"I stopped asking, although they did mentioned hunting you down if you even thought about using their cell phone GPS chips to track them down."

"I hadn't thought of that." Flack said. Danny could see the cogs turning in his head.

"Let them do what ever it is they are going to do. Stella assured me they aren't leaving the country or the state for that matter, so they'll be fine."

"Stella, Claire and New Mexico." Flack recalled. "You're not the least bit curious?"

"Yes, but it's her party. Let them enjoy it."

TBC


	151. Chapter 151

"Hey Danny." Flack caught up with him at the end of the day.

"Hey." Danny replied.

"Want to go and grab a drink?"

"Sure. I have no idea what time Stella is bringing Lindsay home." Danny shrugged.

CSI NY CSI NY

"You know there were bars a lot closer to the lab we could have gone to." Danny said as they went in.

"This one seemed appropriate." Flack told him as he pointed out the group of women sat at a booth across the room.

"Stella will personally kill you." Danny warned him.

"Hopefully not in front of witnesses." Flack replied. "And it would be a shame not say to hello."

The guys walked over.

"Hey ladies." Don said.

Danny kissed the top of Lindsay's head.

"You know my husband might object to that." Lindsay commented.

"I won't tell him if you don't." Danny smiled.

"What are you doing here?"

"Don wanted to get a beer." Danny replied. "He picked the place."

"It's okay; I called him and invited them here." Stella explained.

"Ladies are we ready for another round?" The waitress came over.

"Sure." Stella replied. "We're up to S."

"Sex on the Beach." The waitress suggested. Danny and Flack looked at each other.

"So we have Safe Sex on the Beach which has cranberry juice, grapefruit juice, peach nectar and a cherry or Virgin Sex on the Beach which is orange juice, cranberry juice, peach nectar and grenadine syrup." Lindsay supplied.

Stella looked at the other women.

"Just split it down the middle four of each." Stella told her.

"And do you want anything?" She asked Danny and Flack.

"Two beers make sure they are alcoholic." Flack told him.

"So how is my favourite brother-in-law?" A voice asked from behind Danny after the waitress went to get their drinks.

"I'm your only brother-in-law." Danny turned around. "And I'm fine. How are you doing Becky?"

"I'm good."

"How's the whole professor thing working out for you?"

"It's an adjustment." Becky replied. "Ask me again after finals."

"What are you doing here anyway?" Danny inquired.

"You think I'd miss my sister's bachelorette party."

"So what have you ladies been up today?" Flack asked as he pulled up a seat.

"We went rock climbing." One of the techs supplied.

"In January?"

"Indoor climbing wall." Lindsay supplied.

"Ice skating in Rockefeller Centre."

"Saw a movie near Times Square."

"Had manicures and pedicures." Another added.

"Now you're not getting drunk in a bar?" Flack guessed.

"I couldn't decide what to do, so we did everything." Stella shrugged. "And there is some alcohol involved we're just pacing ourselves."

"Here you go ladies." The waitress came and gave them their drinks. "Stella are we almost ready?"

"Give it five minutes." She requested.

"Sure."

Five minutes later, a guy walked up to the microphone on the stage.

"Good evening everyone and welcome to karaoke night."

Danny and Flack looked at Stella who shrugged.

"We have our first volunteers." The guy continued. "Detective Don Flack and Detective Danny Messer. So please give it up for two of NYPD's finest."

"Stella I'm going to kill you." Flack muttered.

"Is it really a good idea to say that in front of this many people who work for NYPD?" Becky asked.

"It's been an expensive day, we needed some free entertainment." Stella shrugged.

TBC


	152. Chapter 152

When they had done singing Danny and Flack grabbed their beers and retired to the bar to avoid all the oestrogen.

Danny smiled and hummed along as Lindsay and Becky sang.

"You know this song?" Flack asked.

"Don, when you've been to our apartment at all since I moved in and the TV wasn't on, when have you not heard country music in the background, even when it's on low?"

"Your point being?"

"When you marry a girl from the country you need to learn to appreciate country music." Danny explained. "She says it helps drown out the city noise. The radio is tuned into the only country frequency in the city and I've listened to more songs about broken hearts and tractors than I ever thought I would but some of it's not bad."

"You're admitting to liking country music?" Flack questioned.

"Just don't tell Lindsay." Danny sipped his beer.

"Who is this anyway?" Flack asked.

"Carrie Underwood normally. She won American Idol last year."

"Speaking of American Idol winners, Kelly Clarkson is hot."

"No arguments from me."

Danny's cell phone rang.

"Messer." He answered. "No Stella invited Flack and I to Lindsay party…. She forced us to sing karaoke… we're at…." Danny gave him the location at the bar before hanging up. "Hawkes is coming to join us."

"More the merrier."

Later Becky walked over to them.

"So Detective do you rumba?" Becky asked Flack.

"Er..no…" Flack replied.

"What do they teach you city guys?"

"Does the Math Professor rumba?"

"He can tell you all the mathematical aspects of dance but he has two left feet." Becky admitted.

"I can rumba." Hawkes told her.

"Then you'll do." Becky led Hawkes onto the dance floor, as the music played while they took a break from karaoke.

"How come my math teacher never looked like that?" Flack asked. "I may have paid more attention."

"She's still my little sister Don." Lindsay commented having walked over and heard his remark.

"Sorry."

"And we learnt a long time ago how to be nice and smart at the same time."

"And to rumba I see." Flack commented.

"It's surprising where ballroom dancing will get you." Lindsay smiled. "Speaking of dancing." She looked at Danny.

"I don't rumba."

"I didn't ask you too. Just dance with me."

"Okay." Danny downed the rest of his beer before following her.

"Having fun?" Stella walked over and asked Flack.

"Yeah." He replied. "You usually invite Mac to group activities. Or more like drag."

"He has a date." Stella replied.

"Are we talking about the same Mac Taylor?"

"Yes."

"Do we know who she is?" Flack inquired.

"Do you know Peyton the new medical examiner?"

"Mac and the medical examiner? When did this happen?"

"This is what their fifth or sixth date."

"How did I not know about this?" Flack asked.

"I knew, Lindsay knew actually I think most of the women at the lab knew."

"Is this where you tell me women talk?" Flack inquired.

"No this is where I say are you going to ask me to dance or do I have to stand here talking?"

"I don't rumba." Flack told her.

"I'm sure we can work around that."

He held out his hand to her.

TBC


	153. Chapter 153

"Becky isn't staying with us?" Danny asked Lindsay.

"No she has a hotel room this time. She flew in last night and she's going back to Boston first thing tomorrow morning."

"Okay." Danny nodded. "Flack said something about Mac having a date."

"With Peyton." Lindsay agreed. "It's why she didn't come today, Stella invited her."

"How come you didn't tell me that Mac had a girlfriend?" Danny inquired.

"I thought I had."

"I would have remembered something like that."

"You mean like you remember the conversation we had last week about me leaving you to become a lap dancer."

"WHAT?!!" Danny looked at her.

"You told me it sound like a great idea."

"When exactly did we have this conversation?" Danny asked.

"When you were ignoring me." Lindsay replied.

"You should have just hit me over the head with a cushion or something."

"Your cell phone rang and you ran out the door." Lindsay pointed out.

"You shouldn't let me ignore you."

"I know. But it was pretty funny what you were agreeing to."

"What else did I agree to?" Danny asked.

"I guess not knowing is your penance." Lindsay winked at him.

"You're evil."

"How does it go? 'Take me to bed or loose me forever'." Lindsay challenged.

"You watch too many Tom Cruise films." Danny told her.

"What does it say that you know it comes from a Tom Cruise film?" Lindsay countered.

"Fighter jets." Danny shrugged.

"You prefer A Few Good Men."

"Come on Jack Nicolson is great." Danny pointed out.

Lindsay yawned.

"Lets get you home Montana."

"You're a good man Danny Messer."

"Don't spread that around, it might ruin my reputation."

CSI NY CSI NY

"So how are you feeling today?" The counsellor asked Lindsay on Monday.

"Better." Lindsay replied.

"Do you want to tell me what happened?"

"I had my bachelorette party on Saturday. I realised that I have good friends a wonderful husband, I have a good life and he was a psychopath serial killer and he isn't going to control my life."

"That's a good step."

"But I knew that before I came and spoke to you last time." Lindsay pointed out.

"Talking things through helps as well."

"I do talk." Lindsay stated. "I talk to Stella and Danny."

"You have a problem with therapy."

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Sometimes its unnecessary."

"Sometimes people need to talk to a third party."

"I understand that, but sometimes people can just have a bad day when things catch up with them. It doesn't mean they need to shell out for therapy. I have a great support system."

"So you don't want to be here?" He guessed.

"I'm here because you said I should come back." Lindsay reminded him.

"So how do you feel about him?"

"He's a serial killer, and unfortunately in my line of work I deal with killers on a daily basis. Some cases affect you more personally than others. I lost twenty hours and I had a bomb sent to me. Thirty people are dead, I'm fine."

"Sounds like survivor's guilt."

"That depends on the pathology of the mind of a serial killer, and since I'm not an expert in that field its not for me to say."

TBC


	154. Chapter 154

Lindsay was flicking through a magazine when the phone rang.

"Hello." She answered.

"_Can I speak to Danny Messer?"_ A woman whose voice Lindsay didn't recognise asked.

"Can I say who is calling?" Lindsay inquired.

"_Tell him it's Jenna."_

"And he'll know who you are?" Lindsay questioned.

"_He should do. Tell him I'm back in town and want to hook up."_

"I doubt that's going to happen."

"_Why is that?"_

"His wife might object." Lindsay pointed out.

Jenna burst out laughing.

"_Danny Messer get married that will be the day."_

"Well I have a marriage certificate to prove it. Who exactly gave you this number?"

"_A mutual friend. So stop lying and let me talk to him." _

"Danny." Lindsay yelled.

"Yeah." He came out of the bedroom pulling a shirt over his head.

"Phone."

"Who is it?" He inquired.

"Jenna."

"Jenna?" Danny repeated.

"She's back in town and wants hook up. She also thinks that I'm lying when I told her we got married."

"Montana." Danny said when she pulled the phone into his chest.

"Don't." She told and turned and walked out the front door slamming it shut behind her.

"Lindsay." He called. "What do you want Jenna?" He said into the phone.

"_Is that anyway to greet an old friend?"_

"We're not friends." Danny told her. "And what did you say to Lindsay?"

"_Is that her name?" _Jenna asked. _"She was trying to tell me she is your wife."_

"That's because she is." Danny stated.

"_You don't believe in marriage."_

"I just hadn't met the right woman yet. What do you want?"

"_I'm back; I thought we could hook up."_

"I told you I wasn't interested and I never wanted to see you again last time we spoke. So lose this number and stay away from me and sure as hell stay away from Lindsay." Danny hung up and dropped the phone on the couch.

He grabbed his wallet, keys and cell phone from the table. He pulled on his jacket and grabbed Lindsay's which she hadn't taken with her.

He pulled the door open and stepped out.

Lindsay as it turned out hadn't gone far. She was leaning against the wall next to the door.

"It's raining outside." She said.

"Yeah." Danny agreed.

"I didn't take my coat."

"I know."

"Or my purse or cell or keys."

"I know." Danny was just going to let her talk.

"I'm not mad." She informed him.

"Good."

"Or jealous."

"You have no reason to be." Danny assured her. "Do you want to come back inside?"

"Not yet."

Danny knew she needed an explanation but didn't want to ask.

"Jenna and I went out a few times a few years ago. She has a screw loose. When I told her it wasn't going to work out she started calling at all hours, she called the lab, she'd show up there at crime scenes. She threw water at Stella because I was stood talking to her in the street. I got a restraining order and then she moved out of state. This is the first time I've heard from her since. I don't know how she got the number."

Lindsay looked at him.

"Everything she told you was a pile of crap." He assured her.

"Danny."

His cell rang. He looked at the caller ID.

"It's Mac." He told her. "What were you going to say?"

"Answer the phone." Lindsay told him.

"No he can wait."

"Danny it's okay. Just let me in and answer the phone and go to work."

"I want to know what you're thinking."

"I told you I'm not mad or jealous. It was just a slight insecurity raising its head. I'll be fine." She insisted.

"Montana." Danny started.

She grabbed his phone.

"Hey Mac." She answered. "He's right here." Lindsay handed him the phone and took the keys from him.

"Hey Mac." Danny said. "I'll be there in twenty minutes." He hung up. "Lindsay."

"Go to work."

He kissed her. "I love you remember that."

"I love you too."

TBC


	155. Chapter 155

"Hey Danny." Stella greeted him at the crime scene.

"Hey Stella."

"Sorry to interrupt your evening." She apologised.

"It's okay." Danny replied.

"Everything okay?" Stella inquired noting the tone in his voice.

"Jenna's back in town."

"The woman who was stalking you and threw water at me?" Stella questioned.

"Yeah." Danny confirmed.

"Did you run into her?"

"She called the apartment and said something to Lindsay which made her run out the door. She didn't go far, and she insists she isn't mad or jealous but I was trying to talk to her when Mac called."

"You shouldn't have answered."

"Lindsay answered it and told me to go to work." Danny sighed. "She screwed up my life for three months three years ago; I'm not going to let her do it again."

"If you need anything let me know."

"As long as she stays away from Lindsay I'll be fine."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Sorry to call you out. I know it's your night off." Hawkes apologised to Lindsay.

"Mac called Danny in anyway." She replied. "What have we got?"

"Take a look for yourself." Hawkes stepped back so she could see the body floating in the pool behind him. "The guard found him while he was doing his rounds."

"There is something in the bottom of the pool too." Lindsay could see the object through the water.

"It looks like one of us going in the pool." Hawkes stated.

"You're the doctor Doc." Lindsay told him. "And since when you're on a case they don't send out a medical examiner to retrieve the body, it looks like you're up."

"Thanks." He said sarcastically.

"Do you know how long it will take to get the chlorine out my hair?"

"Fine." Hawkes agreed.

"I'll check around the pool and see if I can figure out where he went in."

"Okay."

CSI NY CSI NY

Danny was waiting for the elevator when the doors opened he was surprised to see his wife inside.

"Hey what are you doing here?"

"Sheldon called after you left, he needed some help. A dead teenage boy in a swimming pool."

"Right." Danny replied.

"He had to take a dip to recover the body and what will probably turn out to be the murder weapon. I should get started."

"Are we okay?"

"We're fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Danny you didn't give her our number and you didn't ask her to call. It just threw me for a while."

"So we're good?"

"We're fine." She assured him. She gave a kiss a quick kiss and then shoved him backwards into the elevator. "Go where ever it was that you're going."

"I'll see you later."

"I'll be around."

"You can buy me breakfast." Danny said as the doors shut.

"Like that's going to happen." Lindsay walked away.

"Did you say something?" One of the techs who was walking past asked.

"Nothing important." Lindsay replied. "Have a nice evening."

TBC


	156. Chapter 156

"Hey Don." Stella called him over a week or so later.

"Yeah?"

"Can you make sure Lindsay and the evidence gets back to the lab okay there is something I need to take care of?"

"Sure." Flack agreed. "Do you want to tell me what it is that you're not telling me?"

"You see that blonde woman behind me?" Stella asked.

"Sure." Flack replied.

"Her name is Jenna Morgan."

"Why does that name sound familiar?" Flack asked.

"About three years ago she was stalking Danny after he broke up with her." Stella reminded him.

"I remember now." Flack said. "What's she doing here?"

"I thought I'd go and have a little chat with her and find out. This is the third of Lindsay's crime scenes she's been to this week and she showed up at two of Danny's."

"Maybe I should talk to her." Flack suggested.

"I've got it covered."

"Does Lindsay know who she is?" Flack asked.

"No. Danny doesn't want her to unless absolutely necessary. He says she's been through enough with the guillotine guy."

"She's going to find out." Flack pointed out.

"It's the way he wants it handled."

"I'll take her back to the lab." Flack told her.

"Thank you."

"Hey Monroe." Flack walked over to where Lindsay was making sure she had everything.

"Hey yourself."

"Stella asked me to give you a ride back to the lab, there is something she needs to take care of before she goes back." He explained.

"Is everything okay?" Lindsay asked.

"It's fine." He replied. "So are you ready to go?"

"Yes. Can you take my kit while I carry the rest of this?"

"Sure." He agreed.

Stella waited until they had left before she walked over to the tape.

"Do you remember me?" She asked the blonde woman before her.

"Should I?"

"You're Jenna Morgan, and I'm the woman you threw water at three years ago." Stella stated.

"So?"

"So do you want to tell me why you keep turning up at crime scenes? This is the fifth one you've been at this week."

"I don't have to talk to you." Jenna told Stella.

"You don't have to follow Danny and Lindsay around either." Stella countered.

"What do you know about anything?"

"You have diagnosed psychiatric condition; you latched onto Danny after a few dates and made his life hell for three months until your family sent you to an institute out of state. I don't know why you came back to New York or why you're following them again but you need to stay away and you need more help."

"I don't have to listen too you."

"No you don't but it would smarter if you did."

"That sounds like a threat." Jenna said.

"No it's advice from a cop, you keep following them around and you get another restraining order against and you'll probably break that one too. I doubt a judge will look too favourably on that. So you'll be back in a state funded mental institution. So if you want to avoid that just leave them alone."

"I don't like you." Jenna snapped.

"I don't like you that much either."

"Is everything okay Detective?" A uniformed officer came over.

"Just fine, thank you." Stella replied. "We were just talking."

"Yes ma'am."

"Make sure the scene stays taped off, I'm heading back to the lab."

"Yes Detective."

"Jenna give what I said some thought." Stella advised her before walking away

TBC


	157. Chapter 157

"Hey Montana, have you got a minute?" Danny caught up with her a few days later.

"For you I think I can manage it." She smiled.

"I need to give you this." He pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to her.

"What is it?" Lindsay asked.

"A TRO." He replied.

"You're serving me with a restraining order?" Lindsay questioned.

"No that's your copy of the one I filled on your behalf."

"You filed for a restraining order on my behalf?" Lindsay stopped and looked at him. "Against whom?"

"Jenna." Danny replied.

Lindsay grabbed his arm and forced him to follow her.

"Lindsay…" He started.

"Don't say a word yet." She warned him.

When they reached the elevator she kept pressing the button until the door opened.

She nodded for him to get inside. Once the doors closed she randomly pressed a button, once it started to move she jabbed the emergency stop button.

"You filed a restraining order on my behalf?" She repeated her earlier question.

"I have one too." Danny admitted.

"What the hell haven't you been telling me Danny Messer?"

"Lindsay I…."

"You don't get a restraining order for one phone call so tell me. Why have you been lying to me?"

"I wasn't lying; I just didn't want to worry you." Danny told her.

"Danny I'm an adult and a cop I can handle it."

"She's been turning up at crime scenes." Danny conceded.

"She's been turning up at your crime scenes?"

"Yours too. She's been in all the crowd pictures. Stella tried talking to her but it only made things worse. She jammed my voicemail with calls. She called the apartment a couple times when you weren't home; she turned up and camped out in the lobby for a couple hours while you were in court yesterday. The judge gave us both a TRO against her."

"You should have told me, how am I supposed to protect myself against a stalker if I don't know I have one and I have no idea what she looks like."

"We have the photographs we showed the judge upstairs." Danny offered.

"I can't believe that you didn't tell me and you have my friends hiding it from me too."

"I thought you'd been through enough with the serial killer."

"Danny this is something you can't just hide from me, I'm your wife not a stranger you just met on the street."

"I'm sorry, I was…" He stepped towards her.

"Don't." She told him stepping back against the wall. "I'm mad at you."

"So I gathered."

"You should have told me."

"I know." He sighed. "I'm sorry I didn't."

"What did she say?"

"What?"

"What did she say on messages?" Lindsay asked. "Just turning up at crime scenes is not enough to get a judge to sign a restraining order."

"You don't want to know."

"I do." Lindsay stated.

"You don't. Trust me."

"Danny."

"The woman is crazy but she isn't dangerous. She'll turn up and we can have her arrest and she can get sent back to where she can get help." Danny insisted. "Just trust me on this."

Lindsay reached around him and hit the button to get the elevator moving again.

When it reached the floor, the doors opened and she walked.

"Is everything okay?" Mac who was waiting of the lift asked.

"Depends on your definition of everything." Lindsay stomped passed him.

Mac looked to Danny.

"I just told her about the restraining order." Danny explained.

"You were supposed to tell her about that before you applied." Mac told him.

"She was out a scene when the clerk told me to come right over." Danny tried to justify.

"You still should have told her first. Fix it."

"I'm trying Mac."

TBC


	158. Chapter 158

Lindsay walked into the lab grabbing a labcoat; she pulled some gloves from the box and put them.

"What have we got?" She asked Hawkes.

"Is everything okay?" He inquired.

"I just found out my husband has been lying to me for two weeks and getting everyone else to lie to me."

"Is this about the Jenna thing?" He asked.

"See my point exactly." Lindsay said. "I just thought she called once and that was it. Now I find out she's been stalking me as well as Danny and leaving messages on my answer phone. Does he tell me? No. I only find out when he hands me a copy of a restraining order he filed on my behalf."

Hawkes moved some evidence out of her way.

"I'm sure he did what he thought was best."

"No one else thought to mention it to me?" Lindsay asked.

"I only know because Flack mentioned something. I couldn't tell you what she looked like other than his description. I think he called her a blonde devil."

"Gee that's helpful." Lindsay replied.

"Come on Lindsay, you know Danny loves you. He was just trying to protect you from worrying over nothing."

"I think this means it was more than nothing." She held up the restraining order.

"You have to let him off the hook."

"I will when I'm done being mad."

"How long do you think that will take?" Hawkes asked.

"As long as it takes." Lindsay replied. "What have we got on the case?"

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey Hawkes, have you seen Lindsay?" Danny caught up with Hawkes later.

"Boy is she mad at you."

"I noticed." Danny replied.

"You should have told her before you filed for the restraining order."

"So Mac, Stella and Flack told me. Have you seen her?"

"She's in the morgue with Sid." Hawkes replied.

"Thanks." Danny told him.

Danny headed down to the morgue.

Lindsay was stood with Sid looking over the victim's body.

"Lindsay." Danny said. "Do you have a minute?" He asked.

"Since we're not working a case together, I'm guessing this isn't work related."

"No." Danny replied.

"Then no, I'm busy." She stated.

Sid who had no idea what was going on shook his head suggesting Danny didn't push it.

"I guess I'll find you later." He left.

"I guess the honeymoon is over." Sid commented.

"We never got a honeymoon unless you count twelve hours trying to get back to New York so we'd be back in time for work the next morning." Lindsay told him.

"So what caused trouble in paradise?"

"I have a restraining order I didn't apply for against a woman I didn't know was stalking me." Lindsay explained.

"You have a stalker?" He asked.

"A woman who stalked Danny a few years ago. He thought I didn't need to know about it to protect me."

"So you're mad at him?"

"You don't think I have a right to be?"

"I'd say you could probably get about twenty-four hours, maybe thirty-six out of it."

"You're trying to set a time limit on how long I can be mad that he lied to me and got my friends to lie to me?"

"No, I was just saying…" Sid started to trail off.

"Lindsay." A voice from behind her.

Lindsay turned to see Peyton.

"I'm taking a break and going to get some coffee. Do you want to come with me?" Peyton offered. "I'm sure Sid can fill Sheldon in on anything you need to know about the case."

Lindsay glanced at Sid before responding.

"I'd like that." Lindsay replied.

"Sid if Mac wonders where we are we've gone for coffee." Peyton informed Sid. "We'll be back in twenty minutes."

TBC


	159. Chapter 159

"Men are idiots." Peyton handed Lindsay a cup of coffee from the vender down the block from the crime lab.

"What did Mac do?" Lindsay asked.

"I thought we were talking about Danny."

"It sounded like you had a complaint too."

"I'm a medical examiner, but having someone run out on you to a crime scene repeatedly gets annoying after a while." Peyton admitted. "But we were talking about Danny, not Mac Taylor."

"Men are idiots who think we can't take care of ourselves."

"They have a white knight complex." Peyton agreed. "The badge doesn't help."

CSI NY CSI NY

Hawkes was examining what Sid was showing him when Mac walked in.

"Where's Lindsay? I thought she was down here."

"Peyton took her to get coffee." Sid replied.

"Peyton did?" Mac questioned.

"She seemed somewhat irked."

"That's the polite way of putting it." Hawkes smirked. "I think Danny will be sleeping on the couch for a few days."

"Then perhaps it's best that she went for coffee." Mac said. "When she gets back can you tell her the jury went out in her case?"

"Sure." Hawkes replied. "You know he should have told her before it got this far."

"I think everyone including Danny knows that now." Mac stated.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Okay can you let me know if you hear from her?" Danny said as he pacing the living room of the apartment. "Okay thanks."

Lindsay had left the lab just before six while Danny had to stay and work on. He had gotten home to not find her there, or any sign of her even being there. He had tried to call her on her cell phone only for it to go straight to voice mail.

He had started calling everyone they knew in the city.

Flack had found out that Jenna had been in a bar all afternoon and was still there so she didn't have anything to do with Lindsay's disappearance.

The phone rang.

"Hello." Danny snatched it up.

"_Danny, it's Stella. Have you found her yet?"_

"No." Danny admitted.

"_Do you want me to come over?"_

"No." He replied. "But thanks for the offer."

"_She probably just went somewhere to cool off." _ Stella offered helpfully.

"She couldn't call and tell me she's okay?" Danny asked.

"_You hid something important from her, we all told you to tell her. She'll calm down in a few days, but for now you just have to be a patient."_

"How can I be patient if she's disappeared? Do you know what kind of people are out there?" Danny asked.

"_Yes."_ Stella replied.

"What if some psycho grabbed her?"

"_Danny be rational."_

"We see it all the time." Danny reminded her.

"_Danny, I tried calling her cell phone and I got the voicemail too which means its probably off."_

"Great." Danny muttered.

"_I'm still at the lab would you like me to remotely turn it on and get a GPS fix?"_

"Please." Danny requested.

"_You're taking the heat for this if she gets annoyed."_

"Fine." Danny agreed. "Call me back when you know where she is."

"_I will."_

"Thanks Stella."

TBC


	160. Chapter 160

Danny got up from the couch when he heard the door open.

"Where the hell were you?" He asked as she came through the door.

"I'm an adult I can go out." Lindsay pointed out

Danny looked at her.

"What?" She asked.

Danny stepped up and kissed her. Lindsay felt the anger drain from her body.

"What was that for?" She inquired as she stepped into the kitchen and set the bag she had been carrying on the counter.

"Do you know how worried I was?" Danny asked. "I had Flack run down Jenna to make sure she had done something to you. I called everyone we know and I even had Stella remotely switch on your cell phone."

"I know I spoke to her a few minutes ago." Lindsay grabbed some plates from the cupboard.

"Where the hell were you?"

"The court house. I had to switch my cell phone off while I was in court."

"I thought the jury only went out this afternoon." Danny questioned.

"I've been here long enough to have friends in the DA's office. I had to wait for one of them to finish up."

"Why?"

"Because you wouldn't tell me why you filed for a restraining order, so I went and saw the original paperwork and supporting evidence myself."

"That's where you've been for the past three hours?"

"I went and got coffee with Rebecca and then I spent thirty minutes stood getting dinner." She took the cutlery bag and plates and carried them passed him to the coffee table. "You'd better sit down if you're hungry."

Lindsay started taking the take-out she'd brought and setting it on the table.

"Did I miss something?" Danny asked a little confused.

"I get why you were trying to keep things from me. I'm still mad that you lied to me and got everyone else to lie to me." Lindsay replied. "But I understand why on some level."

"Okay." Danny replied hesitantly.

"It's going to get cold if you don't sit down."

"I'm still confused."

"Look we're going to eat, we're going to have discussion about why it is a lousy idea to lie to me and you're going to promise to never do it again even if it's for my own good."

Danny sat down next her.

"Sounds like a plan. What did you get?"

"Mexican." She replied.

"Mexican?" He questioned.

"It's what I felt like eating."

"Okay." He didn't want to argue more than necessary.

"You know Danny there is an upside to arguing." Lindsay told him.

"There is?"

"Make up sex."

"I thought I was sleeping on the couch and you're talking about make up sex?" Danny was even more confused.

"I was mad at you; I wasn't going to make you sleep on the couch. Besides which I'm kind of use to sleeping on you."

"Just out of curiosity can we skip the lecture on never lying to you if I agree to never do it again even if it's for your own good and skip the make up sex part?" Danny asked.

"No." Lindsay replied. "We stick to the schedule."

"I'm sorry ya know."

"I know. Eat." She prompted.

"Women are illogical." He stated.

"Women aren't illogical; you just don't understand the logic. Pass the chilli cheese fries."

"There are chilli cheese fries?" Danny questioned looking in the bag.

"Of course."

"I_ love_ chilli cheese fries." Danny remarked emphatically.

"I know. But you also like meal worm spaghetti." She pointed out as she took a fry. "And that's a guy thing."

"Liking chilli cheese fries?" Danny questioned.

"Getting distracted by food. I'm going to grab a soda, do you want one?"

"Sure."

TBC


	161. Chapter 161

"So let me know about lunch." Lindsay told Danny as she backed out of the room only to run into someone.

"Watch where you're going." He caught her.

"Sorry Sheldon." Lindsay apologised. "Adam just paged me with some results; I'll let you know what he found."

"I guess you found her." Hawkes said to Danny stepping further into the room when Lindsay had left.

"Yeah."

"Was she being lobotomised?" Hawkes guessed.

"No."

"What happened? She was pretty pissed at you yesterday."

"She's still annoyed I lived to her, but not what I lied about." Danny explained.

"How did you manage that?" Hawkes inquired.

"She did it all herself. She disappeared to the court house, and got one of the DA's she knows to get her a copy of the original application for the TROs."

"She read it?"

"Yeah,"

"And then she let you off the hook?" Hawkes questioned.

"No, I got an hour lecture on why I shouldn't lie to her and had to promise never to do it again."

"So did she tell you about her bonding session with Peyton yesterday?"

"What?"

"They went out for coffee, according to Sid she was venting and Peyton suggested that they get out of the lab, they were gone for half an hour."

"She didn't mention anything to me. I didn't think they were that good friends."

"She's only known Peyton a couple months." Hawkes shrugged.

"Were you looking for me for some reason?"

"I have a friend who can get us tickets for the Knicks / Clippers game on Tuesday night. I checked the schedule you're off that night, Flack's coming."

"Sure sounds good." Danny replied before it dawned on him. "I'll have to check with Lindsay first."

"That's what you get for getting married." Hawkes joked.

"Trust me it has benefits."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Hey Lindsay." Stella caught up with her later. "Peyton and I are going to lunch do you want to come with us?"

"I'm supposed to be having lunch with Danny." Lindsay glanced at her watch.

"There you are Montana." Danny walked in. "I need to take a rain check. They found my suspect and I need to go and talk to them."

"Okay." Lindsay replied.

"Thanks. By the way are we doing anything Tuesday night?"

"I have to work." Lindsay answered. "Why?"

"Hawkes wanted to know I wanted to go to the Knicks / Clippers game with him and Flack."

"Go have fun." Lindsay told him. "And Stella it seems I'm free for lunch."

"Good. We're going to that place a couple blocks away."

"The one with the cheesecake?" Lindsay guessed.

"That's the one."

"I love that place."

"Me too."

"Where exactly is this place?" Danny asked.

"I thought you had to go and interrogate a suspect?" Stella reminded him.

"I do."

"Maybe you shouldn't keep him waiting." Stella suggested.

"It's a her actually." Danny corrected.

"Then you shouldn't keep her waiting." Stella tried to shuffle him out of the room.

"Why am I feeling like you're trying to get rid of me?" Danny asked.

"Stella, I have a better idea." Lindsay told her. "We'll just leave."

"Works for me." Stella agreed. "See you later Danny."

"It's your turn to pick up something for dinner." Lindsay reminded him.

TBC


	162. Chapter 162

"It sounds like you and Danny sorted things out." Stella commented as they waited for their food to arrive.

"He did the wrong thing for the right reasons."

"I guess my suggestion paid off." Peyton commented.

"It was a good idea, especially since I couldn't see the woods for the trees."

"What suggestion?" Stella was intrigued.

"I reminded her that if Danny wouldn't tell her why he had applied for the restraining order, she was a detective and there were other ways to find out."

"Which is why you ended up at the court house." Stella put two and two together.

"I read and listened to everything."

"You know he was pretty worried about where you where." Stella told her.

"I know." Lindsay admitted. "I had to turn my phone off and I just hadn't turned it back on. We had a long talk about why he was never going to lie to me again."

"Do you seriously believe he won't lie to you again?" Stella asked.

"No. But hopefully he'll think twice about it for a while."

"His heart was in the right place." Peyton commented.

"Why are we talking about Danny? I'm sure there is something else we can talk about." Lindsay suggested.

CSI NY CSI NY

The women were laughing when they came out of the elevator.

"This can't be good." Mac commented.

Stella's pager went off.

"I guess Sid knows I'm back in the building." Stella said. "I'll let you know about next week."

"Okay." Peyton nodded.

"I have to go and pester Adam; I'll see you both later." Lindsay stepped away.

"What?" Peyton asked Mac who was looking at her. "We had lunch and we're going to see a movie next week."

"I didn't say anything." Mac held his hands up."

"Stella is one of your best friends and I like Lindsay. Does it bother you that I'm friends with them?" Peyton inquired.

"No, of course not."

"Good." Peyton replied. "I should get back to the morgue. I'll see you later."

"Have a good afternoon."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay felt a hand slide across the gap between her shirt and pants under her lab coat.

"Keep your hands to yourself Detective." She warned.

"Who is going to make me Montana?" Danny whispered in her ear.

"Mac." Lindsay suggested.

"Low blow."

"Whatever works." She smiled.

"How did your lunch go?"

"Fine." Lindsay replied.

"Fine?" Danny questioned.

"I'm not going to tell you what we talked about if that's what you're angling for."

"I've never been much for angling." Danny joked.

"So I married a comedian. Don't you have work to do?"

"I'm on my lunch break." Danny replied.

"So you thought you'd come and hassle me?"

"That's nice I come and say hello and you call it hassling."

"Some of us have already had lunch." Lindsay pointed out. "And now we have to work again."

"So you want me to leave you alone?"

"That would be good."

"I guess I'll see you later."

TBC


	163. Chapter 163

"Hey Hawkes, how far away do you think that blonde is away from us?" Danny asked as they stood outside the crime scene packing the evidence into the back of the van a few days later.

"About fifty feet give or take." He replied. "Why?"

"That's what I thought. Do me a favour and grab a couple pictures of the crowd while I make a phone call."

Hawkes didn't ask why and just took the pictures while Danny dialled.

_"Dispatch." _ A woman answered.

"This is Detective Danny Messer with the crime lab. Badge number…" Danny gave her his badge number. "I need someone to come and arrest a woman is who is violating the restraining order I have against her."

"_What is your location Detective?"_

Danny provided the location.

_"I'm showing units currently at that location."_

"I know, but I needed it on record that I called it in. Can I get them to arrest her?"

_"Go ahead Detective."_

"Thank you." Danny hung up. He beckoned one of the officers over,

"Can I help you Detective?"

"You see that blonde woman on the end over there?" Danny asked.

"Yes."

"Her name is Jenna Morgan; I need you to arrest her."

"For what Detective?"

"She's in violation of the restraining order that I have against her." He handed him the piece of paper. "She has to stay at least 500 yards away from me, my wife, my apartment, the crime lab and any active scenes that either of us are working. She's been stood there since I got here."

"We'll take care of it."

"So that's Jenna." Hawkes said as the officers walked over to the tape which Jenna was stood behind.

"That's her."

"A blonde devil is a fitting description." Hawkes stated. "She's hot."

"She's also a psycho." Danny reminded him.

"Jenna Morgan?" The first officer approached her.

"Yes."

"Place your hands on the wall." He instructed.

"You can't find a crook so you just arrest random women on the streets." One of the on lookers remarked loudly.

"Sir step back." The other officer intervened.

"Miss Morgan, hands on the wall."

Jenna complied.

"Do you have any weapons or sharp implements I should be aware of?" The officer inquired.

"Get Detective Messer to pat me down." She asked.

He patted her down and pulled a gun out of her waist band. He passed it to his partner.

"Do you have a permit for that?"

"What do you think?" Jenna smiled sweetly at him.

"Jenna Morgan you're under arrest for violating a restraining order and for being possession of a concealed weapon." He placed her in handcuffs.

"She's got a gun." Hawkes commented.

"You might want to go and give them an evidence box." Danny suggested. "I'll wait in the car."

"Seriously?"

"I can't get involved in her arrest." Danny replied. "Beside if I did it would just give her what she wants."

"Okay." Hawkes agreed. "You know you should probably…"

"I'll call her in a second." Danny stopped him closing the trunk.

"Good."

Danny pulled out his phone and hit speed dial.

_"Hey cowboy."_ Lindsay answered.

"Hey Montana." Danny smiled as he slipped into the driver's seat.

_"Everything okay?" _ Lindsay inquired.

"Jenna turned up at the crime scene, they're arresting her now."

"_Good." _ Lindsay replied. "_Are you okay?"_

"She had a gun…"

TBC


	164. Chapter 164

"She had a gun?" Lindsay repeated rather loudly causing Sid to raise an eyebrow.

"_It was concealed. They found it while they were putting her in cuffs." _ Danny explained.

"But she had a gun."

"_Lindsay she's being put in the back of squad car. It's fine."_

"The psycho woman who has been stalking us has a gun and its fine?"

Danny humming Moon River down the phone.

"I should have never told you that song made me feel calmer." Lindsay muttered.

"_I'm headed back to the lab as soon as Hawkes gets his butt in the car. I'll see you soon."_

"Okay."

"_Where are you anyway?"_

"Getting strange looks from Sid. I'll see you when you get back."

"_I love you."_

"Me too." Lindsay replied before she hung up. "Sorry." She apologised as she slipped her phone back onto her belt "Where were we?"

"Everything okay?" Sid inquired.

"Jenna Morgan just got arrest for breaking the restraining order. She had a gun on her." Lindsay explained.

"On the positive side he did tell you straight away this time."

"I know."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Danny is there anything you'd like to tell me?" Mac caught up with him later.

"I think the Mass Spec is on the blink again." Danny offered.

"I mean regarding an arrest."

"Jenna turned up at the scene she was there for a while so I called it in and had the officers arrest her, she had a gun."

"You didn't think you should mention it?"

"I called Lindsay." Danny pointed out.

"There's someone here to talk to you. The gun wasn't registered to her or anyone else in her family. But it did come up with a hit in the system."

"Illegal possession of a weapon and carrying a concealed weapon should mean she stays in jail." Danny said.

"I take it you're going to want to be there when they arraign her."

"Yeah. I think Lindsay will too." Danny confirmed.

"Go and talk to this guy and then get back to work."

"Yes boss." Danny replied.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay sat stirring a spoon around her coffee cup, her chin rested on her hand.

"A penny for them." Hawkes slid the stool on the other side of the table.

"Huh?" Lindsay said.

"A penny for your thoughts."

"They aren't worth a penny." Lindsay sat back with a sigh.

"Danny stand you up?" Hawkes guessed.

"No."

"Jenna?" He guessed again.

"Honestly it wasn't anything." Lindsay assured him. "Just one of those staring off into space moments."

"I don't tend to have those."

"It helps my brain stop racing every once in a while."

"You mean like Moon River?" Hawkes asked.

"I'm going to strangle him." Lindsay sighed.

"Breakfast At Tiffany's is a good film." Hawkes said. "If you like Audrey Hepburn." He added with a cough.

"Don't worry I won't let anyone in on your little secret." She patted his hand.

"Seriously thought if you ever want to talk." Hawkes offered.

"Thanks." Lindsay told him as her pager beep. "That's probably Adam. I'll see you later."

TBC


	165. Chapter 165

A/N: Make sure you read the last post which i posted last night first.

Lindsay and Danny sat in the back of the courtroom while they wait for Jenna's turn to be arraigned to be up.

Lindsay slipped her hand into Danny's and smiled at him when he squeezed her hand.

"I know a good Italian place near here when we're done." Lindsay whispered to him.

"How do you know a good Italian place?"

"I went out a couple times with a lawyer when I first moved here." Lindsay replied.

"You never mentioned that." Danny told her.

"It never came up."

"Docket number 9763892 People vs. Jenna Morgan. One count violation of a restraining order. One count possession of an illegal unregistered firearm. One count possession of a concealed weapon."

"How does your client plead Mr Gilbert?" The judge asked.

"Not guilty." Jenna replied.

"People on bail?" The judge asked.

"We ask that she be held without bail your Honour." Howard Stackhouse from the DA's office requested.

"Come on your Honour." Gilbert protested.

"Your Honour." Stackhouse started. "This isn't the first time Miss Morgan has stalked Detective Messer, she did it three years ago as well and it's not just Detective Messer she's stalking. She's also been stalking Detective Monroe."

"Your Honour my client isn't a danger." Gilbert told the judge.

"Your Honour she carried an unregistered firearm, which was in a drive by in Brooklyn five years ago. She carried this weapon concealed to a crime scene at which Detective Messer was working."

"Your Honour my client had nothing to do with the drive by and carrying a weapon was a stupid mistaking."

"She could have injured someone else if she had fired it." Stackhouse stated.

"Your Honour she is not a flight risk." Gilbert stated.

"Your Honour, three years ago officers went to arrest Miss Morgan for violating the restraining order Detective Messer had against her then only to find out that her parents had sent her to a psychiatric institution out of state. We were going to uphold the warrant for her arrest, but Detective Messer asked us to drop the charges since she was getting help."

"Your Honour…." Gilbert started.

"That's enough." The judge said. "Bail is denied. We can't have people stalking police officers stopping them from doing their jobs, especially when these stalkers have guns. I'm also recommending that Miss Morgan be given a psychiatric evaluation."

"Your Honour." Gilbert protested.

"Mr Gilbert that's it. Detectives Messer and Monroe work for the crime lab so it would be a good guess that the People have plenty of evidence against your client." He banged the gavel. "Next."

The bailiffs dragged Jenna off.

"So what do you say we blow this popsicle stand?" Lindsay said in a bad New York accent.

"Babe, promise never to try that again." Danny kissed the top of her head.

"Babe?" Lindsay questioned as they left the court room.

"It sounded… appropriate." Danny shrugged.

"Promise never to try that again." Lindsay requested.

"Okay." Danny agreed. "I think I was promised dinner."

"You were." Lindsay paused. "You never mentioned that you had the charges dropped against her last time."

"She was in psychiatric hospital, I thought she'd get help and I'd never hear from her again. I guess I was wrong."

"So do you want to go and see a movie after dinner?" Lindsay inquired.

"Sounds like a date, I'd have to consult my wife."

"I'm sure she'd be okay with it." Lindsay smiled.

"So how come you never told me you dated a lawyer?"

"Danny do you really want to hear a list of every man I ever went out with anymore than I want to hear a list of every woman you've been out with?"

"Probably not."

"If it helps any we only went out twice, I had this co-worker who was just annoying enough to get under my skin."

"I'll take that as a compliment." Danny kissed her.

"If I hadn't turned up at your apartment that night morning." She queried. "Would you ever have made a move?"

"I was just waiting for the right time." Danny admitted.

"It's a good thing country girls aren't backwards about coming forwards."

TBC


	166. Chapter 166

"So how did it go?" Hawkes caught up with Danny the next morning.

"Lindsay took me out for dinner and a movie last night." Danny replied. "Although finding out she went out with a lawyer was an odd moment and she does a terrible New York accent."

"As interesting as that is you know its not what I meant."

"Bail was denied. She's having a psychiatric assessment. The DA says either way she'll be off the streets for a while especially if he can get the judge to agree to it as three strikes."

"Three strikes?" Hawkes questioned.

"She managed to plea bargain an assault charge in college. With breaking the restraining order and the gun charges." Danny shrugged. "He'll let us know."

"How's Lindsay doing?"

"Ask her yourself." Danny suggested. "Hey Montana?" He called to his wife who was walking past.

"Do you have to be so loud?" Lindsay stepped into the room.

"Hawkes wants to know how you're doing?"

"I'm good." Lindsay replied. "Was that it or did you need something else before I go and annoy Adam?"

"You know annoying him won't get you your test rests any faster."

"No but the coffee and Danish I bribed him with earlier got me to the top of the list."

"You know bribery…" Danny started.

"I know. I'll see you both later." She paused and then remembered. "Peyton was looking for you Hawkes; she said something about you having to see something."

"We're not working a case with Peyton." Danny queried.

"It's probably not about our case." Hawkes stated. "I'm co-writing a paper with her."

"Bye." Lindsay ducked out.

"Since when are you writing a paper?" Danny asked.

"Since Peyton asked me if I would write it with her." Hawkes replied.

CSI NY CSI NY

Adam could feel Lindsay's eyes on him as she waited impatiently for her results. He couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when the printer finally spat out the results.

"It's a match." He handed her the results.

"Thank you." Lindsay kissed his cheek.

"Should I be worried about Danny?" Adam asked.

"Don't worry I'll protect you." Lindsay smiled. Adam looked concerned. "Don't worry he'll be fine."

"Okay." Adam breathed a sigh of relief.

"He'll be more annoyed when I tell him the DA's office wants to depose me tomorrow."

"About the stalker thing?" Adam inquired.

"Yes." Lindsay replied. "Thanks for the results and I'll see you later."

Lindsay pulled out her cell phone and dialled.

"_Flack."_ Don answered.

"Don it's Lindsay."

"_How did the arraignment go?"_

"Fine, no bail and a psych evaluation. I'm being deposed tomorrow." Lindsay answered quickly. "But that's not why I called."

"_You didn't call to chat?" _

"No." Lindsay rolled her eyes. "Can you meet me in Madison Square Park?"

"_Where exactly?"_

"Corner of Madison Ave and E 26th." Lindsay replied.

"_Should I bring a picnic?" _ Flack asked.

"Coffee would be good."

"_Be there in about twenty minutes, depending on traffic."_

"You're not going to ask me why I want you to meet me?" Lindsay asked.

"_I'm sure you'll tell me when I get there."_ He answered.

"Bye." They hung up.

Lindsay dropped the file off on her desk and then grabbed her kit headed out to meet Flack.

"Lindsay." Mac caught up with her by the elevator. "Where are you headed?"

"To meet Flack in Madison Square Park." Lindsay replied. "I'm going to be late in tomorrow. The DA's office called they want to record a deposition tomorrow morning for the stalking thing."

"Okay. Tell Flack he owes me ten bucks."

"Why?" Lindsay was curious.

"He'll know."

TBC


	167. Chapter 167

"Come on sleepyhead time to get up." Danny woke Lindsay up the next morning. "Or we're going to be late for work."

"I'm not going in." Lindsay groaned.

"Are you sick?" He felt her forehead with the back of his hand.

"I'm not sick." Lindsay opened her eyes. "I was going to tell you last night but I fell asleep before you got home."

"Yeah, I'm sorry I was late." He apologised.

"It's okay."

"So why aren't you going to work today?" Danny inquired.

"I got a call from the DA's office yesterday, they want me to go in this morning and give a taped deposition for the record. I have to be there at nine, I already cleared it with Mac. I'll be in when I'm done."

"How come they called you to take a deposition and not me?"

"They'll probably get to you as well." Lindsay gave him a kiss.

"Why didn't you mention it yesterday?"

"I didn't see you after I got the call and I figured I'd tell you when you got home."

"Want breakfast in bed?" Danny offered.

"You're going to make me breakfast in bed?" Lindsay questioned.

"I'm only talking about coffee and toast." Danny pointed out.

"Breakfast in bed would be great." Lindsay smiled.

Danny leant over and kissed her.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Can you state your name and occupation for the record?" Howard Stackhouse requested.

"Lindsay Joanna Monroe Messer, I'm a Detective and crime scene investigator with NYPD." Lindsay replied.

There were some more technical parts and explanations for the record.

"When was the first time that you knew you were being stalked?" Stackhouse asked.

"The first I knew was when my husband handed me a copy of a restraining order he had filed for."

"You had no knowledge of it before?" Stackhouse inquired.

"No."

"Did you know who Jenna Morgan was?"

"She called our apartment asking to speak to Danny. She didn't believe me when I told her Danny and I were married. He explained who she was after he hung and that she had stalked him about three years ago. I didn't think it was a problem until he gave me the restraining order."

"Did he tell you why the judge had granted the restraining order?"

"He told me that she had been following both of us to crime scenes, some of our co-workers had taken pictures of her at scenes. He also said that she had left messages on his cell phone and our answer machine."

"Did he say why he didn't tell you?" Stackhouse asked.

"He didn't want me to worry. He had people looking out for me."

"I'm presuming you found out more information." Stackhouse stated.

"I saw a copy of the application for the restraining order and the supporting evidence." Lindsay confirmed.

"If Detective Messer was so concerned that he needed to file for a restraining order why did he warn you?"

"He was concern that I'd been through a lot in the last year and it wasn't the first time I'd been stalked."

"You have been stalked before?" Stackhouse asked.

"Depending on your definition of stalking." Lindsay replied.

"Would you care to elaborate?"

"I was the CSI that the Guillotine Killer dosed with Rohypnol. He also sent me several letters and a bomb in the mail. When he was caught and shot he had a letter in his van addressed to me telling me what he'd done. All of which the FBI have."

"That was you?" Stackhouse questioned.

"Yes. The FBI and NYPD managed to keep my name out of it as they didn't want to invite letters from copycats or psychos." Lindsay explained.

"Has Jenna Morgan caused any problems for you?"

"I've been a bit more weary of people standing around crime scenes and I looked over my shoulder more while I was alone since I found out but apart from her phone messages especially the last one were directed at me, she hasn't caused me that many problems. But I didn't know what she looked like until a couple weeks ago."

"Do you think she could be a threat?"

"I do after I found out she had a gun on her." Lindsay replied.

TBC


	168. Chapter 168

"Hey cowboy, I come bearing cop food." Lindsay leant against the edge of the doorway in the AV room where Danny was looking at tape on the monitor. The original had already been digitalised and uploaded onto the system.

"Doughnuts." Danny turned and smiled at her.

"Hungry?"

"When aren't I?" Danny asked. "How did it go?"

"Okay." Lindsay replied. "I told him about everything."

"You put it on record?" Danny queried.

"It's on record anyway." Lindsay pointed out. "They want you in there tomorrow."

"They haven't called."

"They gave me a letter for you." Lindsay replied.

"That's nice you get a personal service and I get a letter."

Lindsay walked over holding the box away from the computers and kissed him and planted the envelope against his chest.

"Consider yourself notified."

"You're a lot cuter than the normal process servers." He teased.

"I'll be in the break room." She winked at him.

"Hey Montana save me…"

"Already did."

"I don't know perpetuating the stereotype." Hawkes shook his head as he found Lindsay, Danny, Stella, Mac and Flack eating doughnuts.

"Does that mean you don't want the glazed lemon filled one that Lindsay insisted we save you?" Stella inquired.

"No, hand it over." Hawkes stepped in to grab his doughnut while the others laughed. "It's still cops and doughnuts."

"They're good stakeout food." Flack stated.

"You're right there." Lindsay agreed.

"When were you on a stakeout?" Danny asked.

"You went from being a beat cop to a CSI." Danny questioned.

"It's classified." Lindsay replied.

Danny looked at Mac.

"There's a two month period that was blacked out in her personnel file that I was told not to ask questions about." Mac shrugged.

"Like I said it's classified."

"What the hell could be classified in Bozeman?" Danny asked. "I've been there."

"Do you remember the 'don't ask don't tell' pact I have with my brothers and my sister?"

"Yes." Danny eyed.

"Also add to that don't reveal classified information after signing documents that say you'll end up in jail if you do."

"Good Lindsay you're back." Adam appeared. "You have to come and see this."

"I guess duty calls." Lindsay stated. "See you guys later."

"Thanks for the doughnut." Flack told her. The others echoed the sentiment.

"You're welcome." Lindsay replied going to find out what had gotten Adam so excited.

"Don't be too hard on her for not telling you she did something classified." Stella told Danny.

"There are probably some parts of your record you wouldn't want her to see either." Hawkes suggested.

"What is this pick on Danny day? I was just asking."

"Well let me know which way it goes because I have to go back to work." Flack stated.

"I have a tape to get back to analysing." Danny said. "By the way Mac I need some time off tomorrow morning DA's office want me given deposition."

"That's fine." Mac agreed. "Why don't we all get back to work?

TBC


	169. Chapter 169

"Detective when we spoke to your wife yesterday she told us that initially you didn't tell her that Miss Morgan was following your or about the phone calls."

"No I didn't." Danny agreed.

"Would you care to explain why?"

"She went through enough last year and I honestly didn't think Jenna was dangerous just annoying."

"Would you care to elaborate?"

"I know she told you a serial killer dosed her with Rohypnol and she lost a day then he started sending her letters in the mail and a bomb which only didn't go off in her face because of a lose wire. I didn't think she needed to deal with it. Jenna already said something to her when she called the apartment the first time. The people we work with knew who Jenna was so they made sure she stayed away from her."

"But you had to tell her after you filed for the restraining order." Stackhouse prompted.

"Yes. But I didn't tell her everything she went and found out herself."

"She went and found out herself?"

"She's a cop she can get a copy of a request for a restraining order and get a DA to let her see the supporting evidence." Danny pointed out.

"What made you decide to file for the restraining order?"

"At first she was just turning up at crime scenes either of us were at, and then she started calling my cell phone and filling up the voice mail even though I blocked her number. She called the lab and left messages for me and then she called the apartment and the messages started to get more directed at Lindsay and the last one made me file for the restraining order."

"I've heard the tape, why didn't you just have her arrested for making threats?"

"I was hoping the restraining order would get her to back off." Danny admitted. "But I guess I knew she'd break it and it was a legitimate reason for having her arrested. I didn't think she'd have a gun."

"When did you first meet Miss Morgan?" Stackhouse asked.

"About three and a half years ago. I was in a bar with some friends of mine and it was busy. Jenna ran into me and spilt her drink all over me. She apologised and I bought her another drink. We got talking. She seemed nice enough; stupidly I gave her my number. We went out a couple of times but something didn't seem right so I told her I didn't think it would work out and that I was swamped at work."

"What did she do that brought on the first restraining order you filed for against her?"

"She started calling at all hours, I changed my number but she kept calling. The she bought a police scanner and started showing up at crime scenes and outside the lab. Then one day I was stood outside the lab with Stella."

"Stella?" Stackhouse prompted.

"Detective Bonasera." Danny supplied. "We were talking about where to go for lunch I think and Jenna walked up and threw a bottle of water in Stella's face and called her a whore. She made other derogatory remarks. I filed for the TRO that afternoon. It worked for about three days after she was served and then she showed up outside the lab and made a huge scene. I called it in to get some uniforms to pick her up but she took off. Since there were witnesses they issued a warrant for her arrest. They went to her parents' house to pick her up but they had sent her to a mental hospital in New Jersey."

"So you asked them to drop the warrant?"

"I thought if she was getting help that was the end of it and I didn't think it was worth wasting more taxpayer dollars having her picked up for fleeing the jurisdiction and prosecuted. The ADA who was on the case agreed. I didn't think anything of it until she called."

"Did you think she was violent?"

"No. Not really but then she had a gun. I don't know what I would have done if she'd done something to Lindsay."

"Do you believe she would have?" Stackhouse asked.

"The woman is a deranged stalker; I don't know what she's capable of." Danny told him. "My wife is the best person I know. My whole perspective on life changed the day I met her. I honestly never planned on getting married but I guess sometimes you meet someone you know is the right person and you have to be with them."

"How long have you been married?"

"We got married December 27th." Danny replied.

"Two days after Christmas."

"We were only engaged for 20 hours." Danny explained. "I'd been waiting for the serial killer to get caught and carrying the ring around for over a month waiting for the right moment. When Mac, Detective Taylor, called and told us he was dead it seemed like a good time. We'd gone to Montana for Christmas to see her family and it seem liked a good idea to do it for we came back to New York. Lindsay's family lives all over the country but they were all there for the holiday. Her brother and his wife and kids live in Montana, her sister and her fiancé live and work in Boston and her other brother, his wife and their five kids live in Indiana when he's not travelling for work."

"Let's talk more about the incident that led to Miss Morgan's arrest shall we…" Stackhouse prompted.

TBC


	170. Chapter 170

Danny was joking with Flack when Lindsay walked up to him wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

Flack smirked.

"Not that I'm complaining Montana but what was that for?"

"You can be very sweet sometimes." Lindsay replied catching her breath.

"Did I do something I don't know about?" Danny asked.

"Maybe I should leave you both too it." Flack suggested.

"No it was actually you I was looking for." Lindsay told him. "And my friend in the DA's office called and told me what you said about me in your deposition."

"That was only yesterday and how does she know?" Danny asked.

"I didn't ask, but it was very sweet."

"What did you need me for?" Flack inquired.

"You're 6'2 right?" Lindsay said.

"Yeah."

"Do you have an hour or so to spare I need some help with an experiment?"

"We were on our way to lunch." Flack stated.

"I'll buy you lunch if you help out." She offered.

"Why Flack anyway?" Danny asked.

"Our suspect is 6'2 and roughly the same build so I need to see if he is capable of doing something."

"I just had this suit dry-cleaned." Flack pointed out.

"Don't worry Stella and I have some overalls you can change into."

"You're not going to let go until I agree are you?"

"No." Lindsay replied.

"She does pay up." Danny advised Flack.

"Fine." Flack conceded.

"I'm coming to watch." Danny told her.

"Shouldn't be a problem."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Why did I agree to this again?" Flack asked as he was suspending upside down in the air from a rope.

"Because Lindsay offered you free food?" Danny suggested.

"And you have an overwhelming desire to make sure that justice is done." Stella added.

"That's ebbing away by the minute while my blood hits my head."

"The quicker you stopped moaning the quicker we'll get you back the right way up." Lindsay told him.

"What do you want me to do?"

"Hook your feet over the edge and shoot straight ahead with the laser." Lindsay instructed. "Actually Danny why don't you stand over this side with your back to him, you're about the same height as our vic." Lindsay pointed out a spot. "Aim for the back of his head."

"That's nice I'm the dead guy." Danny stepped into position.

"Girl." Stella corrected.

"Okay." Lindsay made a cross on the glass which was set up to be the same size as the window. She measured from the bottom of the frame up to where the cross was. "It's an exact."

"Do I want to know why Flack is doing a Mission Impossible impersonation?" Mac appeared in the doorway.

"Just testing a theory." Stella replied. "It was how our vic was killed."

"He was dangling off the roof; he used the grips on the front of his boots to hold onto the window ledge above. We have evidence of the scratch marks he left and rope fibers from the roof and the window ledge. The cross is where he shot through the window with a handgun which hit our vic straight through the back of the head."

"It's an elaborate way to kill someone." Mac stated.

"You can't leave evidence in some ones apartment if you were never in it." Stella stated.

"We collected the glass from around where it shattered, the glass was inside not outside. The shot had to come from outside." Lindsay continued.

"The bullet was from a handgun not a rifle or a sniper."

"Um guys Flack's turning a little red here, can I let him down?" Danny requested.

"Sorry Don." Lindsay apologised. "Lift you feet off and we'll get you the right way up."

Flack rubbed his forehead when his feet touched the ground.

"You'd better be buying me a decent lunch Monroe." He stated.

"Danny buy him lunch." Lindsay told her husband.

"You're the one who offered." Danny reminded her. "Why do I have to pay?"

"Our pay checks get paid into a joint bank account, who is to say whose dollar is whose?" Lindsay questioned.

"She has a point." Stella remarked.

"Flack change if you want lunch." Danny stated. "It looks like I'm buying."

TBC


	171. Chapter 171

"I think you broke Flack." Danny informed Lindsay later.

"We broke Flack?" Lindsay questioned.

"He hasn't been the same since you hung him upside down."

"He didn't have to help." Lindsay pointed out.

"You didn't mention that he was going to but hung upside down when he volunteered." Danny countered.

"Danny stay here." Lindsay told him walking into the bedroom.

She emerged ten minutes later dressed in a simple red dress.

"Wow!" Danny said.

"You need to get changed too." Lindsay told him.

"Why?"

"We have plans."

"Since when?" Danny asked.

"Since a friend gave me the tickets a couple days ago because she couldn't go and I thought we could do with a night out since neither of us are on call tonight."

"Where exactly are we going?" Danny inquired.

"You'll find out when we get there."

"It's not the opera is it?"

"No." Lindsay replied. "It's not the opera."

CSI NY CSI NY

"So what did you think?" Lindsay asked as they left the theatre.

"I'm not sure what to say." Danny admitted.

"I thought it was great and really funny."

"It wasn't what I was expecting."

"I thought guys liked Monty Python films."

"We do. I'm just going to have the damn song stuck in head for a week."

"What you mean…" Danny clamped a hand over her mouth before she could start singing.

"If you don't sing I'll buy you ice-cream." Danny told her Lindsay nodded in agreement.

"But you liked Spamalot?" Lindsay said taking his hand as they walked down the street.

"I'm just grateful it wasn't Momma Mia."

"There goes my plan for next week." Lindsay joked.

CSI NY CSI NY

Danny was busy analysing evidence the next morning when Hawkes slammed his hands down on the table.

"Didn't find anything?" Danny asked.

"I can't concentrate since you've been whistling 'Always Look On The Bright Side of Life' for the last twenty minutes."

"Sorry blame Montana."

"For putting you in a good mood?" Hawkes guessed.

"For taking me to see Spamalot last night." Danny corrected.

"You saw Spamalot last night?"

"Yeah. She got tickets somewhere."

"Is it any good?"

"It's pretty funny." Danny admitted. "But I've got that song stuck in my head."

"Could you try not to whistle or hum it?"

"I'll try my best." Danny told him.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Have you noticed it?" Stella asked Lindsay as they rode down the elevator.

"Noticed what?" Lindsay inquired.

"Every time you walk past someone they seem to be whistling 'Always Look On The Bright Side of Life'." Stella explained.

"That's my fault." Lindsay admitted.

"Your fault?"

"I took Danny to see Spamalot and he can't stop whistling the tune. It's one of those songs that's contagious."

TBC


	172. Chapter 172

"Detective Messer."

"Yeah?" Danny turned to see a rookie cop who looks twelve stood just on the edge of their crime scene.

"I have a message for you from Detective Monroe; she said can you call your wife when you get a minute."

"I think you got that a little confused." Danny told him. "She is my wife." He pulled his cell off his belt. "No signal. Hawkes you got a signal?"

Sheldon checked his cell phone.

"Er… no but that's not surprising give how far under the city we are."

"Did she say why she wanted me to call her?" Danny asked the rookie.

"This is the extent of my knowledge on the subject." He handed Danny his memo book

**_Det. Monroe_**

_**Det. Messer – call his wife when he gets a chance. **_

"She would have asked you to call her right away if there was a problem." Hawkes pointed out. "We'll be done here in twenty minutes and however long it takes us to get out of here."

"Okay." Danny replied. "Thanks."

Flack was waiting for them when they got to the surface.

"You know Lindsay has been trying to get a hold of you for almost two hours." Flack told him.

"I got a message to call her." Danny told him. "Do you know what it's about? Is she okay?"

"She's fine." Flack assured him. "So is everyone else as far as I know. Just call her."

Danny grabbed his cell phone off his belt and hit speed dial.

"_Monroe."_ Lindsay answered.

"Hey it's me. It appears you left me some messages."

"_I heard you were down a deep dark hole with no signal." _

"Is everything okay?" Danny asked noting the tone in her voice.

He could hear her take a breath before she responded.

"_They called me when they couldn't get a hold of you."_

"Who called you?" Danny asked.

"_The DA's office."_

"Why did…" He trailed off. "What happened?"

"_She escaped." _

"WHAT?!!!" He exclaimed looking directly at Flack.

"_They were transporting her, they didn't have her in cuffs as they thought she was low risk, they guards turn their back for a second and she took off. There is an APB out for."_

"They let her escape?"

"_Breathe or do I have to start humming?" _Lindsay suggested.

"What?"

"_That's what you basically told me a few days ago_." She reminded him.

"Where are you?" Danny asked.

"_The lab. I'll still be here when you get back."_

"Did Flack know?"

"_Yes." _Lindsay admitted.

"I'll see you when I get back."

They ended their call.

"Why didn't you say something?" Danny asked Flack.

"She wanted to tell you herself. She sent me over here to get you to call her since you had no signal. I sent the kid down to you."

"What's happening?"

"They're looking for her, there is a city wide APB out. They're doing everything they can. She made a couple of threats which were aimed more at you than Lindsay, but Mac is keeping her at the lab. He'll want you to stay at the lab too once you get back." Flack explained.

"He didn't think I should be at the lab a couple of hours ago?"

"I think he thought you were surrounded by cops and a couple hundred feet underground so you were pretty safe. I'm here to make sure you get back to the lab in one piece." Flack pointed out.

"I thought you were here to tell me to call Lindsay?" Danny countered.

"That too."

"Everything okay?" Hawkes walked over.

"Jenna escaped, and Flack is here to escort us back to the lab."

"Jenna escaped?" Hawkes repeated. "How did she manage that she's not a criminal mastermind?"

TBC


	173. Chapter 173

"How are you holding up?" Stella walked over to where Lindsay was examining some evidence.

"I'm fine." Lindsay replied. "I talked to Danny he knows what's going on."

"Good. They'll find her." Stella put a reassuring hand on her arm.

"I'm a cop, Danny's a cop we both have guns but I still don't want to go home."

"We all have couches you can sleep on." Stella offered. "Although I'm not sure that you'd both fit on it."

"You'd be surprised how many times we both fall asleep on the couch." Lindsay sighed. "We'll be fine."

"Or you can get a nice hotel room; the city will probably swing for one since they managed to let her escape."

"I haven't stayed in a hotel room in a long time; the only time I spend in hotels is processing scenes."

"It might be nice." Stella pointed out.

"I'm just being irrational."

"Irrationality is sometimes just a gut feeling." Stella told her. "I'm going to get some coffee do you want to join me?"

"I just need to put this away."

Lindsay and Stella were just finishing their coffee when Lindsay's cell phone rang.

"Monroe." She answered.

"_Why if it isn't Mrs Messer?" _ Lindsay recognised the voice that had been haunting her since she first heard.

"It's her get a trace." Lindsay mouthed to Stella.

"Keep her talking." Stella told Lindsay as she left to go and set up the trace.

"_Not talking Detective?"_

"What do you want Jenna?" Lindsay asked.

"_Danny."_ She answered simply.

"Do you really think stalking him and making threats against both of us is going to get you anywhere?" Lindsay inquired.

"_You messed with his head."_

"I didn't do anything to his head. Danny can make his own decisions."

"_You screwed him up. Danny never wanted to get married."_

"People change. Getting married was his idea, his choice. I didn't push him into it." Lindsay told her.

"_You did something to him."_

"I didn't do anything to him. Danny can make his own choices; his choice is to be with me."

"_You did something to him."_

"Jenna you need to turn yourself in. Escaping is only making things worse for you."

"_What do you care?" _Jenna asked.

"Jenna I don't know you, all I know is you have been stalking me and husband and have made threats, but I'm a cop I know judges don't like it when prisoners escape."

"_I'm not a prisoner." _Jenna protested. _"And I'm not going back there."_

"Jenna you need help. Obsessing over something is not good for you."

"_I don't need help!!" _ She protested.

"Your attachment to Danny is unhealthy. You need some help; turn yourself in before it gets worse."

"_I don't need help!" _ The line went dead.

"Damn." Lindsay muttered. She quickly walked over to see what Stella had. "Did you get anything?"

"She's somewhere in Manhattan." Stella replied. "She hung up too quickly for me to get a complete lock."

"Damn."

"What did you say to her?"

"That she needed to turn herself in and get help." Lindsay stated. "She wants Danny."

"We won't let her have him." Stella assured her. "Even if we have to stick him back down that hole again."

"She doesn't want to go back to the hospital, says she won't be a prisoner."

"It will all work out. I'll call and update the APB."

"Thanks Stella."

"Go back to work; it will keep your mind off it. I left the trace on in case she calls back."

Lindsay left her.

Stella grabbed her cell phone and dialled a familiar number.

"Mac it's me. Jenna just called Lindsay. She wants Danny."

TBC


	174. Chapter 174

"How did this get so screwed up?" Danny asked as they pulled up outside the lab.

"You decided to date a psychotic hot blonde who you met in a bar." Hawkes supplied.

"In my defence I didn't know she was psychotic when I met her." Danny unbuckled his belt and opened the door he was just closing it.

There was a bang and then Danny felt a searing pain.

He swore and he crawled around the car. Hawkes who had gotten out the other side the car and ducked when the bullet was fire helped pull Danny to safety.

"This is Flack, shots fired outside the crime lab. Officer down, send back up." Flack announced into his radio as he pulled his gun. He was grateful that he'd made Danny and Hawkes put on bullet proof vests before driving back. "You okay Danny?"

"He'll be fine." Hawkes had his hand clamped over the bleeding wound.

"You know your girlfriend is getting a little annoying." Flack said as a couple more bullets smashed through the car window.

"Shoot her and stop her firing." Danny hissed.

When the gun had gone off everyone on the streets had scattered.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Adam, I need you to keep Lindsay in the building, sit on her if necessary." Stella said as rushed passed him.

"Why?"

"Danny's stalker escaped and is taking pot shots at Danny, Flack and Hawkes outside. Keep her inside."

"Okay." Adam agreed.

Adam went in search of Lindsay and found her.

"Hey Lindsay, do you have your handcuffs?" He asked.

"Yes." Lindsay replied.

"Can I borrow them? I just need to do a little experiment."

"As long as you're not going to handcuff a woman to a bed." Lindsay handed them over. Before she knew it she was handcuffed to the table leg. "Adam what the hell…"

"I'm sorry." He apologised. "But Stella said I had to keep you inside, she said to sit on you."

"Why?" Lindsay asked.

"Someone is shooting at the building." Adam replied.

"What?!!" Lindsay exclaimed. "Adam, get me out of this cuffs now."

"I can't I'm sorry." He apologised.

"Adam take these handcuffs off now or call Sid."

"Sid?" He questioned. "He won't let you out."

"But he will come and pick up your body when I kill you."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Jenna drop the gun and give yourself up." Flack yelled as two patrol cars pulled blocking either end of the street, their occupants moving behind the cars for protection.

"Danny, you okay?" Stella asked as she and Mac joined them.

"Just bleeding Stel." He replied.

"The bullet nicked his arm." Hawkes explained keeping pressure on it. "He'll survive."

"How many bullets does she have?" Flack asked firing his gun back in response to the bullets Jenna fired.

"Given what the bullet looks like." Danny said looking at the bullet on the ground near him. "She'd probably have a 16 round clip, and she's fired more than that."

"Jenna, give yourself up before this gets worse." Mac yelled.

"That's not working." Hawkes said.

"SWAT will be here soon." Stella assured them.

"Where's Lindsay?" Danny asked.

"I told Adam to keep her in the building. I told him to sit on her if necessary."

"Now that's something I'd pay to see." Danny joked.

"You couldn't find a stalker who just sent you threatening mail?" Mac asked.

"Sorry Mac you can't pick your stalker." Danny apologised.

The sounds of sirens alerted them to the fact that SWAT had arrived.

"What have we got?" The SWAT team leader came over to Mac.

"A white female with a hand gun. She was being held for a psychiatric assessment on stalking and weapons charges, she escaped this morning." Mac explained.

"Any ideas why she's taking shots at the Crime lab?" He asked.

"I'm the one she was stalking."

"She called earlier and said she wanted Danny." Stella told him. "She thinks his wife has brainwashed him."

"What?" Danny looked at Stella.

"She called Lindsay earlier. She hung up before I got a trace." Stella explained.

TBC


	175. Chapter 175

The situation was over almost as quickly as it began, SWAT had Jenna incapacitated and her weapon cleared.

"We still need that bus." Flack told dispatch. "How are you doing Danny?"

"Just fine." Danny replied. "But someone might want to rescue Adam from Lindsay."

Stella pulled out her cell phone and called Adam.

"Adam it's Stella, it's over you can let Lindsay leave now…. When I said sit on her if necessary I wasn't being literal…. No, she's not going to kill you… No I'm sure she didn't mean it when she told you to call Sid so he could come and pick your body…. Just let her leave… Yes Adam." Stella rolled her eyes.

"This may hurt." Hawkes told Danny.

"More than getting shot?" Danny asked.

Hawkes removed his hand to check the wound.

"You're lucky." Hawkes told him. "It's not that bad."

"I doubt Lindsay will see it that way." He hissed as Hawkes returned the pressure to his arm.

"Help me get him up."

Flack helped Hawkes get Danny to his feet as the ambulance pulled up.

"Lindsay." Stella stopped her when she exited the building.

"Is everyone okay?"

"SWAT hit Jenna with a Taser. She's back in custody." Stella told her.

"Good."

"And Danny got shot in…"

"WHAT?!"

"He got hit in the arm; he's going to be fine." Stella assured her. "Hawkes is with him." Stella didn't get to say any more before Lindsay took off. "That went well." She muttered.

"Hey honey, I think I'm going to be late for dinner." Danny joked as Lindsay ran over to the ambulance where the EMT was wrapping his arm so they could transport him to the hospital.

"Are you okay? Is he okay?" She asked Hawkes without waiting for Danny to answer.

"He's going to need a few stitches and a tetanus shot, but you should get him back in slightly used condition in a few hours." Hawkes replied. "He'll be fine."

"You know I can talk for myself?" Danny pointed out.

"What happened?" Lindsay asked.

"I got out the car and got clipped." Danny replied. "Turns out she's a lousy shot, but Hawkes pulled me behind the car while Flack engaged her in a shoot out until Mac, Stella and SWAT turned up."

"This is my fault." Lindsay said rubbing her forehead.

"She's a deranged psycho who escaped from jail, how is this your fault?" Danny asked. "Ow, watch it." He told the EMT.

"Sorry."

"She called me. She kept implying that I'd brainwashed you. I told her that she needed help, she didn't take it well she said she wasn't going back."

"Listen to me." Danny looked her straight in the eye. "She escaped got a gun and got here. She was already planning this and nothing you said to her was going to stop her. It's not your fault. Okay?" Lindsay didn't respond. "Okay?"

Lindsay nodded.

"Is anyone coming with him?" The EMT asked.

"I'm his wife, I'm coming." Lindsay told him.

"Actually Lindsay." Mac came up behind her. "I need you to stay here and process the scene. Hawkes can help you."

"What?" Lindsay asked.

"You were inside, and Hawkes was administering first aid, you're the least compromised." Mac explained. "I wouldn't ask if it wasn't necessary."

"I'll go with him." Stella offered.

Lindsay looked at Danny.

"It's okay, stay." He assured her. "This way I can flirt with the nurses."

"Now I know you're going to be fine." Lindsay rolled her eyes.

"I'll make sure he gets the male nurses." Stella assured her.

"Someone is going to have to give it ten minutes before they let Adam go." Lindsay stated.

"What did you do to Adam?" Hawkes asked.

"Handcuffed him to the table." Lindsay admitted.

"What?" Danny said with a chuckle. "Why?"

"Because he handcuffed me to the table, I thought it was only fair to reciprocate." She shrugged.

"I told him to keep you in the building; I was actually joking when I told him to sit on you." Stella pointed out.

"Don't worry; I think he's scared of me now."

"I want details later." Danny told her. Lindsay gave him a kiss.

"Call me when you know anything." She told Stella.

"Of course."

TBC


	176. Chapter 176

"I'm just going to go and clean up." Hawkes told Lindsay when the ambulance left. Stella had already turned over her gun for evidence.

Lindsay couldn't help but focus on the blood on Hawkes' hand.

"Lindsay." Mac said from beside her. "Lindsay. Lindsay." He put a finger under her chin and made her look at him. "Danny's going to be fine. Flack had them both in bulletproof vests."

"I know but…"

"I need you to focus and do your job." Mac told her.

"Okay." Lindsay agreed.

"Why don't you go and check out the bullets on that side of the street?" Mac suggested, he pointed to where Jenna had been hiding. "Hawkes can check out the car."

"Okay."

"Is she going to be okay?" Flack walked over to Mac.

"Her husband just got shot and she was handcuffed to a table and couldn't do anything about it. She also feels responsible because Jenna called her. She'll be fine."

"Adam really handcuffed her to a table? I didn't know he had it in him."

"You're going to need to write out a statement."

"It's not going to be a problem." Flack replied. "You might want to grab the evidence out the back of my car."

"Why is it in your car?"

"Call it a hunch." Flack shrugged. "Look at it this way it didn't get shot up."

CSI NY CSI NY

Stella waited patiently outside while the doctor examined Danny's wound.

"How is he?" Stella asked when he finally came out.

"And you are?"

"Detective Stella Bonasera." She replied.

"As you know he was shot, he will require stitches and won't be able to use the arm for a few days, he should be back in normal in a few weeks. I noticed a wedding band, is there a wife we should call?"

"Lindsay works with us at the crime lab, she was inside when it went down and she had to stay and process the scene. I need to let her know what's going on."

"They wouldn't let her come?"

"Given the woman who shot him is the woman who broke out of jail this morning after being arrested for stalking them both, someone had to stay." Stella replied. "The rest of us were involved in the standoff, she was the least compromised."

"If you give me a number I'll call and explain what is going on to."

"That would be great." Stella pulled out a business card and wrote Lindsay's cell phone number on the back. "Can I go in and see him?"

"I don't see why not."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Adam, you seem a little tied up." Flack joked as he stood in the doorway.

"Funny, can you let me go?"

"I don't know about that." He crossed his arms. "Montana girls seem to be quite feisty when they are annoyed."

"Flack?"

"Why did you handcuff her to the table? That's illegal detention you know."

"Stella told me to keep her in the building." Adam pointed out.

"She meant distract her so she didn't know what was going on outside." Flack clarified.

"Stella said to sit on her."

"She wasn't being literal." Flack crouched down in front of him.

"Is everyone okay?" Adam asked.

"Danny got shot in the arm. He'll be fine. Mac has Lindsay outside gathering evidence so Stella had to go the hospital with Danny and I'm supposed to let you go, but not for another five minutes. I'm going to get some coffee. I'll be back."

"Isn't this illegal detention too?" Adam asked.

"She's a cop. She's allowed to detain you if you commit a crime." Flack got to his feet. "I'll see you in five minutes.

TBC


	177. Chapter 177

"Detective Monroe."

Lindsay sighed as she recognised the voice of the DA.

"Please don't tell me she escaped again." Lindsay turned around.

"No. Since we're now adding escaping custody and attempted murder amongst other charges which are felonies she's under a higher guard level. But the psychiatric evaluations found her unfit to stand trial."

"She managed to escape and find a gun and made her way here and she's mentally unfit to stand trial?"

"She'll be held indefinitely one of the prison psychiatric facilities; she'll be regularly assessed for her competency to stand trial. Even if she wasn't found competent she will be held for at least 2/3 the minimum of the sentence she would received if convicted, so she's looking at least 20 years."

"That's doesn't make me feel any better. She escaped and shot my husband." Lindsay pointed out. "And I'm stuck here having to work out the bullet trajectories of the whole thing while he's at the hospital. So right now I'm not in a very law and order type mood."

"We are taking care of it." He assured her. "I'll talk to Detective Messer in a few days."

"You do that."

CSI NY

Lindsay wiped a tear from her cheek, as she continued to map the trajectories onto the simulation.

"Pretty girls from Montana shouldn't cry." A voice from behind her said.

"Sometimes you're entitled."

She turned around and kissed him wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Careful." Danny whispered against her lips.

"Sorry, are you okay?"

"I'm a whole lot better now." He replied. "They gave me some painkillers and told me to take it easy for a few days."

"They told you more than that. Your doctor called me and gave me instructions."

"The doctor called you?"

"Stella gave him my number."

"Hugs can be healing." Danny told her.

Lindsay wrapped her arms around him, and burst into tears.

"Shush, it's okay." Danny ran his good hand over her hair. "I'm fine, everything is fine."

Stella and Mac stood on the other side of the glass wall.

"I know Danny gets medical leave, but I think Lindsay needs a few days to regroup too." Stella suggested to Mac.

"I thought when you fell of a horse you were supposed to get right back in the saddle."

"Nice analogy but she didn't feel safe going home earlier and then Danny gets shot. She needs a few days, they both do."

"You're supposed to have tomorrow off." Mac reminded her.

"I don't mind working." Stella replied. "It's for a good cause."

"As long as the city doesn't get a murder frenzy, they can have the time off." Mac stated. "I'll go and tell them."

"Give them a few minutes." Stella put her hand on his arm. "Let's get some coffee."

Danny kissed the top of her head.

"I love you." He whispered against her hair.

"I love you too. I don't know what I would have done if…"

"Hey hey hey." He interrupted. "I'm a lot tougher to get rid of than that." Although he made a mental note to get his life insurance increase. "You're stuck with me for life." He wiped her tears away.

"That better be a long time Messer."

"You can count on it Montana." He kissed her forehead. "Although if you want me to agree to anything else now might be a good time as I'm still slightly high on the painkillers they gave me."

"Now you tell me."

"Am I interrupting?" Mac came in a few minutes later.

"No." Lindsay wiped her eyes.

"How are you doing Danny?"

"I'll be fine; I just need a few days." Danny replied.

"Good. You'll be in the lab when you get back on Monday."

"That's fine." Danny knew it was coming.

"I'll see you on Monday too Lindsay." Mac told her.

"What?" Lindsay was a little confused.

"You need a few days too." Mac explained. "Stella said to suggest getting out the city, she said there are some nice places up state which Lindsay hasn't seen."

TBC


	178. Chapter 178

Lindsay opened the door and let them in the apartment.

"Go and sit on the couch." She told Danny. "Do you want anything?"

"A beer would be good." Danny replied.

"You know better." Lindsay stated. "You can't mix alcohol with your pain killers. I'll get you some juice."

"Why don't you come and sit down with me?" Danny suggested.

"Okay." Lindsay came and sat on the couch next to him.

Danny tucked a loose hair behind her ear.

"I'll think Stella's idea was a good one."

"What?" Lindsay looked at him.

"I think getting out of town for a few days would be a good idea."

"What?"

"It will do us good to clear our heads, and I do owe you a honeymoon." Danny reminded her.

"You said you were taking me somewhere warm so you could see me in a bikini." Lindsay countered.

"I have a friend whose father owns a cabin on a lake up state." Danny stated. "I'm sure he could convince him to allow us to borrow it."

"You just got shot; you really want to go away?"

"It could do us some good; it's been a tough couple of weeks."

"Okay." Lindsay agreed.

"Why don't you go and order a pizza and I'll see what I can do?"

"You want pizza?"

"Barbecued Chicken and peppers." Danny replied. "If you want to get fries and hot wings who am I to stop you?"

"Okay." Lindsay agreed not knowing what else to do. She grabbed the phone and went into the kitchen where the menus were.

Danny pulled out his cell phone and dialled a familiar number.

"_Flack."_

"It's Danny." He told him.

"_How's the arm? I went to the lab to check on Lindsay after I made sure Jenna was where she was supposed to be but Stella said you'd both left already."_

"I'm on medical leave and Mac gave Lindsay some time off too. We'll be back on Monday. I'm fine."

"_Good."_

"Stella suggested that we get out the city for a couple days. So I was wondering…"

"_If I'd ask Dad if you could borrow the cabin for a couple days." _ Flack guessed.

"Do you think he'd mind?"

"_He only uses it in the summer, it shouldn't be a problem. I'll call him and get back to you."_

"Thanks." Danny replied. "And thanks for earlier."

"_Just doing my job."_

"Remind me to thank Adam too."

"_He might be slightly less scared of Lindsay when you get back. He told me a few of the things she threatened to do to him and I have to say I'm slightly scared of her."_

"I think that's a country thing. Her father offered to show me how to kill and pluck a chicken after we told them we were getting married. Not quite as obvious as cleaning the proverbial shotgun but I got the point."

"_I'll call my father and get back to you."_

"Thanks."

"_And Danny."_ Flack said.

"Yeah?"

"_Let her take care of you, it may drive you crazy, but it's as much for her as it is you."_

"You've been talking to Stella. I'll talk to you later." He finished the call.

Lindsay returned with two glasses of orange juice a minute later.

"Pizza will be half an hour." She told him.

"Sounds good."

Lindsay curled up on the couch next to him.

"So who do you know who has a cabin by a lake?"

"You know him too. He's about 6'1", black hair, hates being hung upside down."

"Flack?" Lindsay questioned.

"Donald Flack Senior inherited from his father; it will be Flack's when his old man kicks the bucket."

"Have you been there before?" Lindsay asked.

"Once. Flack and I went on a fishing trip."

"I thought you didn't like fishing."

"I don't and we didn't fish. It was just what we called it."

TBC


	179. Chapter 179

Lindsay was packing some clothes into a bag, when Danny appeared in the doorway.

"You don't need to pack that much." He told her.

"I'm packing the bare minimum."

"You can pack less."

"Why exactly would I want to do that?" Lindsay asked.

"Because I plan on you keeping you wearing as little as possible for as long as possible."

"Do you really think you're up to it?" Lindsay challenged.

"Trust me Montana, or do you need me to prove it to you?" He wrapped his uninjured arm around her waist and kissed the side of her neck.

"Hold up cowboy." Lindsay stopped. "Maybe when you're not high on painkillers."

"If it's any help they're starting to wear off."

"Then perhaps you should take some more."

"If I didn't know better I'd say you didn't want me."

"I always want you, but right now I'd rather you weren't in pain."

"A little pain never hurt anyone."

"Neither of us are into S&M." Lindsay stated. "And letting you handcuff me to the bed was as close as you're ever going to get."

"You mean you don't want me to spank you?"

Lindsay kissed him.

"You try and you'll be singing soprano. Now sit down before you fall down."

"What makes you think I'll fall down?" Danny asked.

"You're very pale. Sit down and you can tell me what you want me to pack for you."

"I thought we'd already concluded we didn't need to pack much since I was planning on keeping you naked."

"That maybe your plan but on the off chance that we go outside for a walk or to by milk we'll need clothes."

"Who needs milk?" He tugged her onto the bed.

"You're incorrigible." Lindsay curled up next to him.

"But you love me anyway."

"But I love you anyway." Lindsay agreed.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay woke up to the sound of the phone ringing. The stress of the day had obviously gotten to them and they had fallen asleep.

"Monroe." She answered.

"_Does Danny know you answer your home phone like that?" _

"I was a Monroe a lot longer than I was a Messer. I still am half the time. But I don't think you're calling to discuss names."

_"How's our boy doing?" _Don Flack inquired.

"He's sleeping right now." Lindsay looked over at him.

"_You know he called me earlier?"_

"It seems you were holding out on me. A cabin by the lake."

"_I spoke to my father, he says since it's Danny. I'll drop by with the key and the code to the alarm system by later. He'll have the couple who keep an eye on the place switch the heating on and make up the beds."_

"Thanks Don."

"_Just look after our boy."_

"Always."

Lindsay ended the call. She kissed Danny's forehead before heading out of the bedroom.

Danny woke up a few minutes later.

"Lindsay?" He questioned sleepily.

"Hey how are you feeling?"

"My painkillers wore off." He admitted.

"Then you should take these." Lindsay walked with his pills and some water. "Flack called."

"Did he talk to his father?"

"He says we can borrow the cabin since it's you. Don's bringing round the keys and the code to the alarm later."

"That's good."

"What did he mean since it's you?" Lindsay went back to packing after making sure Danny took his pills.

"Flack Senior likes me because depending on who tells it I saved Flack Jr's life."

"Did you?" Lindsay asked.

"Depends on who tells it. We weren't also a CSI and a homicide detective." He explained. "When we were both in patrol we got called to shots fired, he and his partner were there. We were checking things out and I spotted what turned out to be a bomb, we hightailed it out of there before it blew, Flack pulled me behind dumpster. We just called it even, bought each other a beer and have been friends ever since."

TBC


	180. Chapter 180

Lindsay got up from the couch where she was watching the news when there was a knock on the door.

"Hey Don." She opened the door after opening the peephole.

"Sorry for being so late, but there was a lot of paperwork to take care of after everything."

"It's okay. Come in. Do you want some coffee?"

"No thank you. Or I wouldn't sleep."

"Okay."

"Where's Danny?"

"Sleeping." Lindsay replied. "His painkillers made his drowsy and it's been a long day."

"I won't keep you long." He reached in his pocket. "Keys, the pass code for the alarm system and directions. If you need help finding it once you get to the town, go to the dinner and asking for Jimmy. Telling you work with me and he'll point you in the right direction."

"Thanks Don."

"It's what friends are for. Enjoy your time off."

"See you on Monday." Lindsay saw him to the door.

"Night."

Lindsay locked up. She switched off the TV and turned out the lights before going and getting ready for bed.

CSI NY CSI NY

Danny woke up the sound of Lindsay moving around the apartment.

"Hey." He said yawning.

"Hey." Lindsay smiled at him. "How's the arm?"

"Sore."

"Do you want some more of your painkillers?"

"No. They make me drowsy. I'll just take some Tylenol to take the edge off."

"Okay." Lindsay agreed.

"So what are you doing?"

"Just making sure things are ready for when we leave. I'm ready as soon as you are." She explained.

"What no breakfast?" He joked.

"I thought we'd stop somewhere for breakfast once we got out of the city." Lindsay suggested.

"You have this all planned out don't you?"

"Flack brought directions with him." Lindsay explained. "It should take about two and a half hours to get there depending on traffic."

"When did Flack come by?" Danny asked.

"Around 11. He got stuck having to give statements and…" She trailed off. "Damn."

"What?"

"You need to give a statement." Her cop mode switched on.

"Stella took my statement at the hospital." He explained. "I have to sign it when I can actually use my arm again. When you're done being Detective Monroe can I get a good morning kiss?"

Lindsay walked over and kissed him.

"Good morning."

"Good morning to you too." He echoed. "Any chance of coffee?"

"Coffee I can do. But we need to get you dressed first."

"You offering to help Montana?"

"You think you can manage the buttons without me?" She countered.

"An extra hand would be good."

Lindsay helped him change into a pair of jeans and a loose t-shirt and over shirt.

"When did you want to leave?" Danny asked.

"Like I said when you're ready."

"If you can find the travel mug, I'm good to go."

"I know where it is."

"Then let's get this show on the road." He kissed her.

TBC


	181. Chapter 181

"So what can I get you folks?" The waitress asked as she came over to the table at the road side diner they had stopped at.

"Can I get the breakfast special?" Lindsay requested.

"What type of eggs?"

"Scrambled. Can I get extra bacon and toast too?"

"Sure, anything to drink?"

"Coffee and orange juice." Lindsay replied.

"People are going to think I don't let you eat." Danny joked.

Lindsay shrugged.

"I'm hungry."

"And for you?" The waitress whose nametag read Denise.

"Waffles with a side of bacon and scrambled eggs. I'll take some coffee too."

"Coming right up." She smiled and went to put in their order. She returned a minute later with their drinks. "So what did you do to your arm?"

"I got shot by a woman who escaped custody while she was being returned from a court order psych evaluation to determine whether she was sane enough to stand trial for stalking me and being in possession of an illegal firearm." Danny replied.

"You're joking." Denise didn't believe him.

"Unfortunately not." Lindsay informed her.

"That's bad luck. Then again my ex actually managed to shot himself in the leg while cleaning his gun. I don't know why they thought he was sane enough to give him a gun licence in the first place but that is another matter. I'll be back with your food."

"You okay?" Danny asked Lindsay who had paled slightly.

"Can I get back to you on that one?" She asked.

Danny reached across the table and squeezed her hand.

"We'll be okay. Just enjoy the time out of the city."

"Think you'll be able to cope without 24 hour takeout?" Lindsay inquired.

"I managed Montana didn't I?" He countered. "Besides I have my plan don't I?"

"What the naked plan?" Lindsay asked. Danny nodded. "We'll see if you're up to it cowboy."

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay pulled the car up to the lake and stopped.

"Wow!" She whispered to herself so as not to wake Danny who had nodded off beside her. She slipped out of the car and walked closer to the edge of the water and took a deep breath.

"You the Messers?" A voice called out from behind her.

"I'm Lindsay Messer." She turned around to see an older man walking towards her.

"Dirk Hudson. Me and my wife Maeve keep an eye on the place for the Flacks."

"Nice to meet you." Lindsay shook his hand.

"He okay?" Dirk nodded towards the car.

"I made him take one of his painkillers; they tend to make him drowsy." Lindsay explained.

"Let me help you take your things in." Dirk offered.

"Thank you that would be great." Lindsay smiled.

"It's nice to meet friends of Donnie's."

"Have you known the Flack's a long time?" Lindsay inquired as she opened the trunk.

"About forty years. My son you used to play with Donnie when they were up here for the summer vacation. When I decided to retire my wife and I moved out here permanently." He explained.

"What did you used to do?" Lindsay asked.

"Stock broker." He replied.

"That's fast paced." Lindsay commented.

"It's also what gave me the heart attack. I'd made enough to retire years ago, and it was the wake up call I needed."

"Does your wife like living out here?" Lindsay inquired as she opened the door.

"Alarm is on your left." Dirk told her. "And she loves it; our grandchildren come and spend their summer vacations out here with us. You're not from New York are you?"

"No Montana." Lindsay replied.

"How do you like living in here?"

"It's different, but I like it." Lindsay answered honestly. "Wow."

"Not what you thought of when they said cabin huh?" Dirk smiled.

"No." Lindsay admitted.

TBC


	182. Chapter 182

"He didn't." Lindsay laughed.

"Lindsay?" Danny climbed groggily out of the car.

"Hey." She called from her position on the front porch, where she was sat drinking coffee with Dirk and Maeve.

"Why didn't you wake me when we got here?"

"You needed to sleep. Danny this is Dirk and Maeve Hudson, they live in the cabin over there. Dirk, Maeve this is my husband Danny Messer."

"Nice to meet you." Danny told them.

"You two enjoy your stay; we're only across the way if you need anything." Maeve told them.

"Thank you." Lindsay replied.

"Bye." Danny added as Maeve and Dirk headed back to their cab.

"Making friends while I was sleeping Montana?" He inquired.

"That and getting blackmail material on Flack."

"Anything good?"

"Maeve has photographs." Lindsay smiled.

"Now those we'll have to see."

"This place is amazing." Lindsay looking at the view over the water.

"Yeah. Did you bring the bags in?"

"Dirk helped me." Lindsay nodded. "Since you're awake now do you feel up to going on a walk around the lake?"

"I'll need some coffee first." Danny told her.

"I should be able to help there."

CSI NY CSI NY

"You look happy." Danny commented as he held Lindsay's hand as they walked.

"I'm a country girl, I like wide open spaces and fresh air."

"But you like the city too right?"

"There are a few good things about it."

"Like what?"

"Great pizza."

"Pizza?" Danny repeated. "Anything else?"

"There is a pretty good view from the Empire State Building."

"Anything else?"

"I can't think of anything else right now."

"Why you?"

Lindsay smiled and kissed him.

"You're a pretty good thing too." She told him. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"I seem to remember you had a plan for this weekend."

"You mean the naked plan?" Danny asked.

"That sounds familiar, are you feeling up to it?"

"I'm always feeling up to it." He responded.

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay pulled the blanket tighter around her and sipped her coffee.

"Montana?" Danny said from the doorway.

"Hey." Lindsay smiled over her shoulder.

"What are you doing out here it's cold?"

"Watching the sunset." She replied. "It's been a while and it's beautiful."

"You could have woken me." Danny came and sat next to her on the step.

"You look like you needed your sleep."

"You're pretty good at wearing me out." Danny nudged her.

Lindsay handed over the mug.

"Thanks."

"It's so peaceful here." Lindsay commented.

"That's the one thing I didn't like about Montana, it was too quiet."

"Quiet is good sometimes. You get time to hear yourself think."

"And what are you thinking?" Danny inquired.

"This was a good idea."

TBC


	183. Chapter 183

They got back early Sunday evening.

Danny's arm had been playing up so she made him take a painkiller.

Lindsay woke up from a dream about a forest fire, only to realise that the heat that she had felt in her dream wasn't but from the human hot water bottle beside her.

Lindsay felt his forehead, before climbing out of bed to get the thermometer. She had one of the in-ear ones which she had bought for when she looked after her nieces and nephews.

When she realised how high his temperature was she pulled on some clothes and slipped on her shoes.

"Danny, I need you to wake up for me."

She shook him.

"Danny."

"Sleeping." He murmured.

"Danny, I need you to wake up we need to go to the hospital."

"Why?" He mumbled.

"Because you have a high fever and I think you're wound might be infected. So please wake up so I can take you and I don't have to call 911."

"Okay."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Okay sit here." Lindsay helped Danny into a chair when they entered the emergency room waiting room.

When she was sure he was okay she walked up to the counter.

"My husband needs to see a doctor." She told the nurse.

"So does everyone else in the waiting room. Fill this out."

"He's a cop, he got shot in the arm four days ago, he's been fine other than a little pain for which he's been taking his painkillers, which pretty much knock him out, but he's got a 105 degree fever and …"

"Montana, I don't feel so good." Danny called out.

Lindsay just managed to catch him as he black out and almost toppled off the chair.

"Get a gurney!" The nurse yelled. "What's his name?" She came to help Lindsay.

"Danny, Danny Messer."

"Is he allergic to anything?" She asked.

Lindsay answered her questions as they put Danny onto the gurney and moved him back into the ER.

"What's he taking for the pain?"

Lindsay handed over the bottle of medication.

"He was fine…" A tear ran down her cheek.

"Wait here." The nurse told when they stopped outside the room they had taken Danny into.

"What have we got?" The doctor entered the room.

"Danny Messer, he's cop. Was shot in the arm four days ago in the line. His wife is outside. She says he was fine, had a little pain in his arm which he was taking these for. His wife says she woke up because he was radiating heat; she took his temperature and bought him in. He passed out in the waiting room." She explained.

"Okay, let's get a temperature and look at the wound. What are his vitals?"

"Mrs Messer." Another hospital employee came up to her while she was watching through the glass.

"Yes?"

"We need you to fill this out." She handed her a clipboard.

"He was here four days ago." Lindsay pointed out.

"We still need the information."

"Here is his insurance card; the rest is on your system." Lindsay pulled it out of her pocket.

"You need to fill the form."

"You're serious?" Lindsay looked at her incredulously.

"Is there a problem here?" A man walked over.

"She won't fill out the form." The woman informed him.

"Who exactly are you?" Lindsay asked.

"Ted Newton, I'm the hospital administrator. Maybe I can be off assistance."

"My husband got shot in the arm four days ago, he was brought here. He has a bad fever and he passed out and she won't stop bugging about a form, I've already given her his insurance card." Lindsay burst into tears.

"Helena, I'm sure Mr…"

"Detective Danny Messer." Lindsay supplied.

"I'm sure Detective Messer's records are available. Why don't you take his insurance card and find out?" He suggested as he offered Lindsay a tissue.

TBC


	184. Chapter 184

Lindsay feed the money into the payphone and dialled a familiar number.

_"Taylor."_ Mac answered.

"Mac it's Lindsay, I'm sorry to call so early."

"_I was up anyway, is something wrong?" _ Mac sensed her tone.

"I just wanted to let you know Danny and I wouldn't be today."

"_Is everything okay Lindsay?"_

"Danny's in the ICU." She started crying again.

"_What happened?"_

"The doctor says it's septicaemia. They're trying to get his fever down, but he's in a coma. A bullet fragment is still in his arm, but they can't take it out until his fever comes and…" She broke into hysterical sobs.

_"Lindsay which hospital are you at?" _ Lindsay managed to choke it out. _"I'll be right there."_

CSI NY CSI NY

Lindsay sat in the ICU waiting room holding onto the cup of coffee the nurse had brought her.

"Lindsay." Stella sat down next her and rubbed a hand over her back. Lindsay looked at her and then at Mac and Hawkes who were stood next to her.

"You didn't have to wake them up."

"We were up processing a triple homicide." Hawkes told her. "How's he doing?"

"They haven't told me a lot since they brought him up here."

"Do you mind if I look at his chart?" Hawkes inquired. Lindsay shook her head.

"What happened?" Stella asked.

"He was fine. I've been changing the dressing like they told me. It hurt a bit so he took his pain killers, but I woke up and he was burning up. I woke him up and brought him here. He passed out in the waiting room. I'm scared."

"Everything will be okay." Stella wrapped her arms around Lindsay who was sobbing on her shoulder. "He'll be okay."

Mac wasn't sure what to say so he went and sat on the other side of Lindsay.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Excuse me." Flack stopped at the ICU desk.

"Can I help you?"

"Detective Flack. NYPD." Flack showed her his badge. "I'm here…"

"Let me guess for Detective Messer."

"I'm here for the fingerprints of your John Doe. He might be connected to a series of homicides I'm investigating."

"Sorry."

"What was that about Detective Messer? Danny Messer."

"Yes." The nurse replied.

"He's here?"

"He was brought in in the middle of the night with septicaemia. There are some his colleagues and his wife in the waiting room."

"Thank you." Flack walked towards the waiting room.

"What about your John Doe?"

"He's not dying is he?"

"No, but he is critical."

"He can wait five minutes until I find out what's going on with my best friend." Flack walked through door.

Stella, Hawkes and Mac looked up.

"No-one thought to call me?" Flack asked.

"It was the middle of the night." Stella said.

"But you're all here." Flack pointed out.

"Lindsay called Mac to tell him what was going on. Mac called me and Hawkes was with me as we'd just finished processing a scene." Stella explained.

"How's Danny?"

"Coma." Hawkes replied. "He has septicaemia, they've got him on high dose antibiotics and are trying to get him stable enough so they can go and removed the bullet fragment that is still lodged in his arm."

"How's Lindsay holding up?" Flack asked.

"She's not."

"Where is she?"

"She went to call Danny's parents. I offered to do it for her but she said she needed to do it herself. Danny didn't tell them he got shot." Mac explained.

TBC


	185. Chapter 185

Flack had gone in search of Lindsay.

Lindsay had just hung up the payphone when he found her.

"Hey." He said.

"Hey what are you doing here?"

"I had to come and get a John Doe's fingerprints; the nurse mentioned something about Danny."

"I would have called you…." Lindsay trailed off.

"It's okay. Mac filled me in on everything. Did you get a hold of Danny's parents?"

"They'll be here as soon as they can, but their car is in the shop and something about a strike on the ferry."

"I heard about that on the radio." Flack admitted.

"He was fine." Lindsay insisted.

"He'll be fine Lindsay." Flack looked her straight in the eyes. "Come here." Lindsay stepped into his arms. "He'll be fine, he's tough and he wouldn't ever leave you alone."

"I wish he would wake up."

"He will." Flack assured her. "Danny has a way of surprising you. He managed to convince you to marry him didn't he?"

"It actually took him longer to convince me that he wasn't joking about getting married before we came back to New York."

"He'll be okay and back joking in no time."

"He'd better be, he owes me a honeymoon somewhere hot."

"A weekend at the lake wasn't fun?" He asked.

"It was great, the keys are at home."

"Don't worry about that now. You can tell me about your trip." He suggested.

"Hey." Hawkes when they walked back.

"Did they say anything?" Lindsay inquired.

"They're going to try an ice bath to get his temperature down." Hawkes told her. "It should help."

"Won't it induce hyperthermia?" Flack asked.

"Having a temperature of 105 is worse, but it should along with the drugs bring it down to a more reasonable level." Hawkes explained. "Once they're done you can go and sit with him for a while."

"Okay." Lindsay sat.

"I know this I bad timing." Mac said, "But Stella and I need to get back to the lab, Hawkes is going to stay with you."

"I can stay too." Flack told her.

CSI NY CSI NY

"Mrs Messer." The Doctor came out.

"Yes?"

"His fever has come down a few degrees; we still need it to come down another two degrees before we remove the bullet fragment. But things are looking better."

"When will he wake up?" Lindsay asked.

"We can't say. The coma is his body's way of giving itself time to heal. He'll wake up when he's ready."

"Okay."

"You can go in and see him for a while." The doctor offered.

"Thank you." Lindsay left them to go and see Danny.

"I told her he'd be okay; please don't tell me I lied to her." Flack said to the doctor.

"And you are?"

"Detective Don Flack." Flack introduced himself.

"He's stable, we'll know more in a few days."

"She's blaming herself for them going away for the weekend." Flack told Hawkes.

"She did everything right, she was changing his bandages and checking the wound. She brought him as soon as she realised something was wrong." Hawkes explained.

"If you'll excuse me." The Doctor said.

"Of course." Hawkes replied.

"They are really having a lousy year." Flack sat down.

"They'll get through it. They have each other."

"Lindsay is falling apart."

"She's entitled, but she's stronger than she looks."

TBC


	186. Chapter 186

A/N: Sorry for the mix up. I posted just before i went to work, and i've only just got home. Here is the right chapter and a extra chapter to make up for it.

Carrie Messer bustled into the ICU waiting room.

"Don?"

"Hey Mrs M. You remember Sheldon Hawkes."

"My son got shot and no-one tells me about it until 4 days later?"

"Hawkes, why don't you go and tell Lindsay Mrs M is here and I'll fill her in." Flack suggested.

"Okay, it's was nice to see you again Mrs Messer despite the circumstances." Hawkes excused himself.

"What happened?" Carrie sat down next to Don.

"Do remember you Jenna Morgan? She was stalking Danny a few years back?"

"Yes."

"She came back to town a couple months ago, and started stalking both him and Lindsay. They got a restraining order, which she violated so she was arrested; she had a gun with her. She was denied bail she escaped after having a meeting with a psychiatrist to determine if she was sane enough to stand trial. She got another gun and there was shoot out in front of the lab. Danny got shot in the arm. She's back in a high security mental ward. She won't be getting out any time soon. Danny was fine; he and Lindsay even went away for a few days. But Lindsay woke up and found him burning up. She brought him here. He's septic, the doctors brought his fever down some, but it turns out there is a small bullet fragment in his arm. They have to get his fever down more before they can remove. He's in a coma."

"Coma." Carrie repeated.

"Doctors say he's stable."

"Carrie." Lindsay came out and hugged her mother-in-law. "Where's….?"

"He couldn't get out of work."

"Come and see him." Lindsay took her hand.

"Okay."

"What did you tell her?" Hawkes asked as Flack.

"A brief summary of what happened. She knew about Jenna the first time, I just filled her in on the brief details."

"Why didn't he tell her in the first place?"

"Mothers have a tough enough time with their kids being cops as it is, you tell them every time you get shot at they'd have a fit and try and wrap you up in cotton wool. What they don't know won't hurt them."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Don." Mac said as he and Stella entered the waiting room.

"Shush." Flack told them. Lindsay was curled up on the seats, her head resting on Flack's leg asleep.

"How's Danny?"

"His fever finally came down enough for them to take him to surgery."

"Where are Hawkes and Danny's parents?" Stella inquired.

"Hawkes went to watch the surgery and Danny's parents went to get something to eat."

"How's she doing?"

"She's holding up. She finally dropped about ten minutes ago." Flack answered.

"You didn't have to go work?"

"I took a couple personal days." Flack replied. "I'd tied up all my cases bar the paperwork."

"We can sit with her if you want to go and get something to eat?" Stella offered.

"It's okay." Flack assured her. "I went for a walk and grabbed something earlier."

"How long do they expect the surgery to take?"

"They didn't think it would take that long, but they want to be careful."

"Did he wake up yet?" Stella asked.

"No. The Doctor said it could be a couple days."

"I guess this isn't the way they wanted to end their trip."

"Lindsay said they had a good time. There was something in there about Danny owing her a honeymoon somewhere warm."

"She told me he promised to take her somewhere hot, because he wanted to see her in a bikini." Stella smiled.

"He was thinking of Jamaica." Mac added. "He asked about they could both get time off."

TBC


	187. Chapter 187

Flack sat by Danny's bedside reading him the sports section of the paper while a nurse checked his vitals.

"Montana." Danny mumbled.

Flack dropped the paper.

"Did he just say something?" Flack asked.

"Montana, he's coming around. He may be slightly incoherent for a while. I'll go and get the doctor."

"It's not incoherent; Montana is what he calls his wife. Can you call her she's in the cafeteria with his mother?" Flack requested.

The nurse nodded and left the room.

"Hey Danny, good of you to wake up."

"Montana." Danny repeated.

"They're going to get her buddy. They're going to get her. You need to open your eyes."

It took a few seconds for his eyes to open.

"Do you know where you are?" Flack inquired.

"Hospital." Danny managed. "What happened?"

"Do you remember getting shot?" Flack inquired. Danny nodded. "Go away for the weekend with Lindsay?" Danny nodded. "You still had a bit of the bullet in your arm. You got a major fever and you had septicaemia and went into a coma. Lindsay brought you here, when she woke and realised you had a fever. They managed to get your fever down and remove the bullet. They've been pumping you full of drugs and we've been waiting for you to wake up."

"Where…" He gulped.

"She went to the cafeteria with your Mom."

"Mom?"

"Lindsay had to call her. They both haven't been home since you were brought in."

"Is she okay?"

"For someone so little she has a lot of tears." Flack told him. "But I've been here keeping an eye on both of them. Making sure they eat and take a break. I took a few days personal leave."

"Why?"

"Because they needed someone to keep an eye on them. It's what friends do."

"Thanks." Danny replied.

"I'm glad you're okay buddy." Flack patted his arm. "Just so you know Lindsay called Mac after you were admitted, he, Stella and Hawkes were right here waiting with her."

"What?"

"At four thirty in the morning. They've been coming to visit."

"Detective Messer. It's nice to see you're awake." A doctor walked back in with the nurse. "I'm Doctor Armstrong. How are you feeling?"

"Tired and thirsty." Danny admitted.

"Get him some water." He told the nurse. "Now you're awake we're going to need to run a few more tests." He informed Danny as he used his pen like to check Danny's pupil reaction. "But we can wait until after you've seen your wife, is she around?"

"She went the cafeteria to get something to eat with his mother." Don informed him. "The nurse said she'd send someone to get them."

"Good. Did Detective Flack inform you of what's been happening while you were sleeping?"

"Yes."

"You're doing better. No fever and you've been responding to the medication we've been giving you."

"How long do I have to stay?" Danny asked.

"You'll be here for another few days, and then we should be able to move you to a normal room. You should be home in a week or so depending on how well you're doing."

"He'll be happy to get rid of you." Flack told Danny. "Just so Hawkes stops looking over his shoulder."

"What?" Danny looked at him.

"Lindsay gave him permission to look at your chart; he's been keeping an eye on things."

"You have good friends." Dr Armstrong said.

"Danny." Lindsay and Carrie came through the door.

"Hey Montana, hey Mom." Danny smiled. "Hey don't cry." He warned seeing Lindsay was tearing up. "I'm not up to singing."

"Don tried but we had to ask him to stop he was scaring people." Carrie joked.

"And with that I'll leave you all to catch up." Flack got to his feet. "I'll call Mac and the others and let them know he woke up." He left them too it.

"Hey Don." Lindsay followed him out.

"Yeah?" He turned around.

"Thank you for everything." She gave him a hug. "I wouldn't have gotten through it without you."

"You're a lot tougher than you think. Go back and talk to him. I have some phone calls to make."

TBC


	188. Chapter 188

"Okay, I'll let them know." Mac said before he hung up the phone.

"Everything okay?" Stella who was standing in the doorway to his office inquired.

"That was Flack. Danny woke up."

"That's great news." Stella smiled. "I'll let Hawkes know."

"Thanks. Did you for drop by for another reason?"

"I got the test results. That brown substance was clay."

"As in potters' clay?" Mac asked.

"Yes. I looked into it and our vic took a pottery class last week. Angell is trying to get a list of attendees."

"Let me know if you find anything else."

CSI NY CSI NY

"Danny." Flack whispered round the corner.

"Why are you whispering?" Danny inquired.

"Where is Lindsay?"

"I convinced her to go home for a while. Why?"

"I brought you something she wouldn't approve of." Flack stepped around into the room.

"What?"

"Just make sure to get rid of the evidence." Flack handed him something.

"A meatball sub." Danny smiled. "Thanks."

"I know you don't like hospital food any more than I do."

"Does anyone?"

"Just take it easy you haven't eaten in a couple days."

"I think I still remember how." Danny took a bite. "Next time pizza."

"Who said I'm bringing you food again?"

"Who snuck you pizza last time you were in hospital?" Danny reminded him.

"Pizza boxes are a little harder to sneak in around here." Flack pointed out.

Danny and Flack were reminiscing when Lindsay returned.

"Hey cowboy." She gave him a kiss.

"Hey yourself."

"What have you been eating?" She inquired.

"Nothing why?"

"Crumbs."

Danny looked at Flack.

"That's what you get for marrying a CSI. I should get going I have to be at work in the morning." Flack got up.

It took a few minutes for goodbyes before he left.

"He bought you a meatball sub didn't he?" Lindsay asked.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"You have crumbs all over you and your breath smells of marinara sauce." Lindsay pointed out.

"I plead the fifth."

"I'd say the evidence trumps the fifth." Lindsay countered.

"How are you?" Danny changed the subject.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?"

"The doctor already told you how I am." Danny reminded her.

"I'm asking you."

"I want to go home."

"You need to stay." Lindsay told him. "The doctor said so. They've got it under control, but you're still pretty sick."

"I hate hospitals."

"So does everyone else." Lindsay squeezed his hand. "But I can't deal with you burning up and collapsing again. So you're staying until the doctor says that you can go home."

"Yes ma'am." He knew there wasn't much point fighting her on it.

"I have to go back to work tomorrow."

"Okay." Danny agreed. "They're probably short handed."

"You also have to see the department shrink before you come back."

"Great." Danny muttered.

"I had to." She reminded him.

"I know."

TBC


	189. Chapter 189

It took a month between Danny being let out of hospital, physical therapy and psych evaluations for Danny to be cleared to go back to work.

Lindsay and Danny had an early breakfast before they headed into work.

Lindsay held his hand as they walked through the lab.

"Forgive me?" She whispered.

"For what Montana?"

"Surprise!!" The break room was full of people yelling.

Over their heads there was a banner that said 'WELCOME BACK DANNY!'

Danny looked at Lindsay who shrugged while smiling coyly.

"As nice as this is don't you all have jobs to do?" Danny joked.

"I guess you don't want the cake." Stella said.

"No-one mentioned anything about cake, forget work."

That caused a chuckle.

After about twenty minutes, Mac's sense of duty caused the small party to break up.

"So what have you got me for me Mac?" Danny asked.

"A botched jewellery store heist. Take Hawkes with you."

"How did they manage to botch it?" Danny inquired.

"One of the robbers keeled over and died from a suspected heartache as they escaped from the store. He was in possession of the diamonds they had stolen. The other got away with some lower priced items."

"And they say being a thief is dangerous." Danny joked.

"Maybe it was a little divine intervention." Hawkes countered.

"It's one hell of an instant retribution."

"Are you thinking of taking your comedy act on the road anytime soon?" Mac inquired.

"I think that's his polite way of asking us to get to work." Danny whispered to Hawkes as they made their way out the door.

"I can see Danny is back to his normal self." Stella smiled.

"You should have seen him after his last required therapy session. You'd think he'd won the lottery." Lindsay recalled.

"I wasn't going to mention this to Danny, but I thought you would want to know." Mac said.

"Know what?" Lindsay inquired.

"Jenna attempted suicide yesterday. Since it's a secure facility, they got to her almost instantly. But she's now under suicide watch."

"How'd she try?" Lindsay asked.

"You don't need that information."

"Thank you for letting me know." She paused. "Stella did we get the test results back yet."

"They're on my desk." Stella replied. "I'll go and grab them and meet you in the layout room."

CSI NY CSI NY

"So how does it feel to be back?" Hawkes asked Danny as they ducked under the crime scene tape.

"Like I've never been away." Danny replied. "You take the body, I'll take inside."

"Why do I always get stuck with the body?"

"Because you're the former medical examiner. I'm the lowly crime scene guy. Besides you get to collect the loot."

"Do you want to go and grab a drink after work?" Hawkes inquired.

"Lindsay and I were thinking of grabbing dinner." Danny replied.

CSI NY CSI NY

After work Lindsay and Danny decided to stop and get a drink before they ordered take out and ate at home.

"What can I get you?" The bartender inquired.

"Two beers." Danny replied handing over the money. Once he had the drinks he made his way back to the table Lindsay had taken up residence at.

"Here you go."

"Thanks." Lindsay smiled. "So what are we drinking to?"

"Let's hope the rest of the year is better." Danny proposed as a toast.

"To a better year." Lindsay agreed.

THE END

Epilogue to follow.


	190. Epilogue

Epilogue

Since they had taken a week of to go to Jamaica, Lindsay and Danny weren't able to get time off to go to Montana, so they spent Christmas with Danny's family.

Their anniversary however they did manage to wangle the day off.

"Okay, here's your gift." Lindsay carefully set the box on the table in front of him. "Be careful opening it."

Danny was intrigued as he carefully pulled the ribbon undone and pulled the lid off. Inside nestled in tissue paper was a small evidence jar filled with blue liquid.

"Er… thanks." Danny was a little confused.

"You don't like my chemistry experiment?" Lindsay inquired.

"It's great; I'm just not sure why you're giving it to me."

"And you call yourself a scientist." Lindsay shook her head, and reached under the tissue paper. "Try the modern version."

Danny realised she had handed him a positive pregnancy test.

"You're pregnant?" He paled.

"It would appear so. Happy anniversary."

"How.. How…" Danny repeated.

Lindsay grabbed her cell phone which was on the table and hit a speed dial number.

"_Hawkes."_

"Sheldon, it's Lindsay sorry to bother you."

"_You're not calling me in on a case are you?"_ Hawkes inquired.

"No, I was just wondering if you could explain the basics of human biology to Danny."

Danny realised what she was doing and grabbed the phone.

"Never mind." He said into it before hanging up. "How long have you known?"

"A couple weeks." Lindsay admitted.

"A couple weeks?" Danny repeated.

"Known is probably the wrong work. I missed a period and didn't notice until about a week later and then I kept putting off taking a test. When I finally took one it came up positive and I still didn't believe it so I wanted to wait until my doctor confirmed it. I saw her on the 23rd and then I've been trying to figure out the best way to tell you."

"Okay." Danny took in the information. "How pregnant are you?"

"About seven weeks."

"Okay." Danny sat back in his chair.

"What are you thinking?" She inquired.

"Flack's going to make a lot of jokes about me reproducing."

"That's your first thought?"

"We're going to have to move."

"Can I get something other than Flack or living arrangements? Are you happy about this?"

"Can I get a minute I'm still trying to get my head around it?" Danny asked.

"I'm going to get a drink." Lindsay got up and headed for the kitchen.

Danny followed her into the kitchen as she was taking the juice from the refrigerator.

"Lindsay will you look at me?" He requested. Lindsay slowly turned around. "I am happy about it; I just thought we were being careful."

"We were but nothing is one hundred percent effective other than abstinence. It's not like we didn't want kids, we'd talked about it." Lindsay reminded.

"I know. It's a good thing, just a surprise."

"Are you sure?" Lindsay asked.

"I'm sure. I love you."

"I love you too." Lindsay smiled as he stepped closer and kissed her. "So do you want the rest of your present?" She inquired.

"Sure." Danny replied.

Lindsay slowly undid the buttons of shirt one by one revealing something very red and very lacy.

"I don't think it will fit me." Danny joked.

"How about we try it out while it still fits me?" Lindsay inquired.

"Are you sure it's okay?"

"Do I need to call Hawkes again?" Lindsay asked.

"No."

"So what do you say cowboy?"

"After you Montana, after you."

A/N: Thank you to everyone for reading and all the reviews.


End file.
